Month: February 2025

A who’s who of the biggest artists and bands of all-time have performed on MTV’s (still active!) live performance series MTV Unplugged, including Nirvana, Eric Clapton, and Mariah Carey. But many old episodes of the show haven’t been available on streaming now — until now.

More than 50 episodes of MTV Unplugged are on Paramount+, including a bunch “that haven’t been available in 20+ years,” according to a press release, along with dozens of episodes of VH1 Storytellers and CMT Crossroads.

You can see the full list of available episodes below.

MTV Unplugged

Aerosmith (1990)
Alanis Morissette (1999)
Alice in Chains (1996)
Alicia Keys (2005)
Allman Brothers (1990)
Annie Lenox (1992)
Arrested Development (1993)
Babyface & Friends ft. Stevie Wonder, Eric Clapton, K-Ci & JoJo (1997)
Bob Dylan (1994)
Bryan Adams (1997)
Chris Isaak (1995)
Cranberries (1995)
Crowded House/Tim Finn (1990)
Dashboard Confessional (2002)
Duran Duran (1993)
Elton John (1990)
Elvis Costello (1991)
Eric Clapton (1992)
Hall & Oates (1990)
Hootie & the Blowfish (1996)
Jewel (1997)
John Mellencamp (1992)
kd lang (1993)
Kiss (1995)
Korn (2007)
Lenny Kravitz (1994)
Live (1995)
Mariah Carey (1992)
Melissa Etheridge (1995)
Neil Young (1990)
Nirvana (1993)
Oasis (1996)
Paul McCartney (1991)
Paul Simon (1992)
Pearl Jam (1992)
Queensryche (1992)
R.E.M. (2001)
Rod Stewart (1993)
Seal (1996)
Shakira (2001)
Shawn Mendes (2017)
Sheryl Crow (1995)
Sinead O’Connor/The Church (1990)
Smithereens/Graham Parker (1990)
Soul Asylum (1993)
Staind (2001)
Sting (1991)
Stone Temple Pilots (1994)
The Wallflowers (1997)
Tony Bennett (1994)
Tori Amos (1996)
Uptown Show ft. Jodeci, Father MC, Mary J. Blige, Christopher Williams, & Heavy D (1993)

VH1 Storytellers

Alicia Keys (2012)
Bee Gees (1997)
Billy Joel (1997, 1998)
Black Crowes (1996)
Bruce Spingsteen (2005)
Christina Aguilera (2010)
Coldplay (2005)
Counting Crows (1997)
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (2000)
Dave Matthews (1999)
Dave Matthews Band (2005)
David Bowie (1999)
Def Leppard 1999)
Ed Sheeran Live (2015)
ELO (2001)
Elton John LIVE (1997)
Elvis Costello (1996)
Eurythmics (1999)
Foo Fighters (2009)
Goo Goo Dolls (2002)
Grace Potter & The Nocturnals (2012)
Green Day (2005)
Hanson (1998)
Jewel (1999)
Jill Scott (2012)
John Mellencamp (1998)
Johnny Cash & Willie Nelson (1997)
Mary J. Blige (2008)
Melissa Etheridge (1996)
No Doubt (2000)
P!nk (2012)
Paul Simon (1997)
Pete Townshend (2000)
Phil Collins (1997)
R.E.M. (1998)
Ringo Starr (1998)
Rod Stewart (1998)
Sheryl Crow (1998)
Snoop Dogg (2008)
Stevie Nicks (1998)
Sting (1996)
Stone Temple Pilots (2000)
The Chicks (2006)
The Pretenders (1999)
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers (1999)
Tom Waits (1999)
Tony Bennett (1998)
Tori Amos (1999)
Wyclef Jean (1999)
ZZ Top (2009)

CMT Crossroads

Black Pumas & Mickey Guyton (2022)
Boyz II Men & Brett Young (2019)
Brooks & Dunn and Friends ft. Luke Combs, Brett Young, Midland, Cody Johnson, Jon Pardi, & Brandon Lancaster (2019)
Cheap Trick & Jennifer Nettles (2016)
Gavin DeGraw & Chris Young (2019)
Halsey & Kelsea Ballerini (2020)
John Legend & Lee Ann Womack (2014)
John Mellencamp & Darius Rucker (2017)
Kid Rock & Hank Williams, Jr. (2002)
LeAnn Rimes & Friends ft. Carly Pearce, Ashley McBryde, Mickey Guyton, & Brandy Clark (2021)
Lindsey Buckingham & Little Big Town (2006)
Lynyrd Skynyrd & Brantley Gilbert (2015)
Lynyrd Skynyrd & Montgomery Gentry (2004)
Melissa Etheridge & Dolly Parton (2003)
Nathaniel Rateliff & Margo Price (2021)
Nelly & Friends ft. Kane Brown, Florida Georgia Line, Blanco Brown & Breland (2021)
Nick Jonas & Thomas Rhett (2016)
OneRepublic & Dierks Bentley (2014)
Randy Travis & The Avett Brothers (2012)
Sheryl Crow & Friends ft. Chris Stapleton, Joe Walsh, Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Lucius, & more (2019)
Sheryl Crow & Willie Nelson (2002)
Stevie Nicks & Lady A (2013)
Sting & Vince Gill (2011)
The Doobie Brothers & Luke Bryan (2011)
Willie Nelson & Friends ft. Neil Young, Jack White, Sheryl Crow, Leon Russell, Ashley Monroe, Norah Jones & Jamey Johnson (2013)

March 2 is coming right up, and movie fans know that’s when the 97th Annual Academy Awards are airing. Conan O’Brien is hosting the 2025 Oscars, and in the days leading up to the show, the Academy is starting to reveal who else will be involved in the broadcast.

Today, they announced that Doja Cat, Lisa of Blackpink, and Raye will be performing. They’ll actually all be performing together for “a showstopping celebration of cinema.” The three artists recently collaborated on Lisa’s new song “Born Again.”

This follows reports that Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are also performing.

Meanwhile, Lisa has been dipping her toes into acting with a role on the new season of The White Lotus. She recently said of the experience, “It is my first acting [experience] so I don’t know what to expect on set but everybody just being so supportive helped me a lot. […] I’m so nervous. I was sweating. I was like, ‘I can’t remember my lines.’ I’m blanked.”

Doja recently got a bit of acting in as well, when she starred in a new Super Bowl commercial for Taco Bell (even if they didn’t want her to).

Find the full list of Oscar nominations here.

Houston genre-twister Don Toliver may have released his first new single of 2025 recently, but that doesn’t mean he’s done with his Hardstone Psycho era just yet. While he released the bright sounding “LV Bag” with J-Hope and Pharrell this past Friday, he keeps things grungy in the video for his heavy metal-tinged thrash rap anthem “Tore Up” from the moto-club-themed 2024 album.

The video once against finds Hardstone MC running roughshod over rugged landscapes before finding respite in a roadside dive bar seemingly populated entirely by women. The video is directed by someone named “White Trash Tyler” and Shapxo, and the visuals absolutely live up to that characterization. Toliver raps atop an ATV while a crew of rednecks spin out alongside him in the middle of a river; elsewhere in the video, mud, blood, guts, and grit cover the camera and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome references rub up against elegant shots of exotic dancers sliding down poles. It’s a lot — which, frankly, describes the whole Don Toliver experience.

We’ll see if Toliver continues to support Hardstone or reverts to his newer, Pharrell-inspired sound soon enough. For now, you can watch Don Toliver’s “Tore Up” video above.

Hardstone Psycho is out now via Cactus Jack/Atlantic Records. Get it here.

We’re now a bit over a week away from the 2025 Oscars, which are set to air on March 2. As the date approaches, a clearer picture of what the Conan O’Brien-hosted 97th Annual Academy Awards will look like is starting to come into focus: The Hollywood Reporter reports that Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are set to perform during the broadcast.

Wicked didn’t pick up a Best Original Song nomination (Wicked songs have been around for a wicked long time), but it is otherwise heavily nominated, as it’s up for Best Picture, Best Actress for Erivo, Best Supporting Actress for Grande, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup And Hairstyling, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing, Best Sound, and Best Visual Effects.

Meanwhile, Grande recently addressed some of the less wholesome fan art of her and Erivo’s characters that exists out there on the internet, saying, “I wish I could unsee some things. I mean, wow, I had a feeling, but I didn’t know it would be on this scale or this graphic.” She was also recently asked if getting an Oscar nod is betting than being Grammy-nominated, but she pleaded the fifth.

Find the full list of Oscar nominations here.

ESPN has spent the past two years making major changes to its NBA staff, as their NBA coverage team was hit hard by layoffs and has seen some unexpected departures on top of those firings. The top broadcast booth, in particular, has been a revolving door over the past two seasons after being one of the most consistent lead booths in sports for the decade prior.

Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson were laid off before the 2023-24 season, with Doris Burke being elevated to the top booth alongside Mike Breen and ESPN bringing back Doc Rivers to join them. Rivers lasted just a few months before bolting back to an NBA bench, taking the Milwaukee Bucks job in the middle of last season, creating some turmoil for ESPN’s lead broadcast team. JJ Redick was eventually elevated into that third seat, but he left at the end of the season for a coaching opportunity of his own with the Los Angeles Lakers.

To start the season, ESPN just kept Breen and Burke together as a tandem, but eventually moved Richard Jefferson up into that third seat. Until Monday, ESPN had not committed to Jefferson being part of the top crew for postseason, but the network has now officially announced he would indeed be joining with Breen and Burke for the rest of the season and would be on the call with them for the Western Conference Finals and NBA Finals in May and June.

Jefferson has been a good fit between Breen and Burke, as he’s adept at breaking down the game but really shines in helping bring Burke’s full personality out in a way Redick did not. That group has been more entertaining this year with Jefferson while still being able to provide great insight into the basketball being played.

Nipsey Hussle passed away almost six years ago, but his marathon continues. March 1st is the grand opening of Marathon Burgers in Los Angeles, just a few minutes away from the store where Nipsey first began expanding his entrepreneurial legacy. The Marathon (Brand) started the burger concept in 2024 with a pop-up and is officially opening the diner with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at noon on March 1.

In a statement, The Marathon (Brand) team said, “The Marathon team is excited to expand the brand into the restaurant industry here in LA. When Nipsey birthed The Marathon (Brand), launching it with The Marathon mixtape in 2010, the goal was always to enterprise this into a full lifestyle brand – music, fashion, food/hospitality, and entertainment. This is another step towards reaching Hussle’s vision.”

The diner is located at Melrose Avenue and Gardener Street, and will offer a menu including the titular smashburgers (two Wagyu beef patties smashed with grilled onions, served on a toasted brioche bun and topped with gourmet Fresno Peppers, house made pickles, American cheese, ketchup, mustard and “secret sauce”), fries, wings, and milkshakes.

The restaurant is just one of Hussle’s many business concepts, which included co-working spaces, the revitalization of his Crenshaw neighborhood, and of course, Marathon clothing, which still lives on as an appointment-only boutique just a few blocks from the Marathon Burgers location. The Neighborhood Nip Foundation is also teaming up with ASICS to co-sponsor the Los Angeles Marathon on March 16, with funds raised going to the Nipsey Hussle Plaza revitalization project.

The best Star Wars show is almost back.

Disney+ has released the trailer for season 2 of Andor, the Rogue One prequel series that follows Cassian Andor (played by Diego Luna) as he becomes an increasingly important player in the Rebel Alliance.

Revolution is in the air, and fittingly, the trailer is set to a rebellious song: “The Revolution Starts Now” from the 2004 album of the same name by working class hero Steve Earle (he was also very good in The Wire!). Is it jarring hearing a “real” song, not a John Williams or John Williams-inspired score, in a trailer for a Star Wars project? Sure is. And yet! It works.

Watch the trailer above.

“One of the great thrills of making Andor is the scale of the story and the number of characters we’re able to meet — ordinary people, Imperial overlords, passionate revolutionaries,” creator Tony Gilroy. “They are real people making epic decisions, all of them staring down questions with terrifying consequences. Cassian’s journey is the soul and spine of our story, but it’s the choir that makes the show. I’m so excited for audiences to see where we go in season 2.”

Andor season 2, which also stars Stellan Skarsgård, Genevieve O’Reilly, Denise Gough, Kyle Soller, Adria Arjona, Faye Marsay, Varada Sethu, Elizabeth Dulau, Alan Tudyk, Ben Mendelsohn, and Forest Whitaker, premieres on April 22.

Rapper bobbleheads are kind of a theme today. “If I had two nickels, etc.,” but it is pretty funny that two different teams in different sports are in the headlines today for more-or-less the same reason. While the Detroit Pistons are hosting their Big Sean Day in March, the Houston Astros invited their lucky charm, Travis Scott, to throw out the first pitch at their spring training opener at CACTI Park against the Washington Nationals, in a ritual that is becoming kind of a tradition.

2,000 fans who attended went home with bobbleheads of the rapper decked out in a baseball uniform emblazoned with the name of his hard seltzer brand (which also has the naming rights for the Astros’ training facility). Here’s a pic; it’s kind of adorable:

Brands have clearly jumped back on the Cactus Jack bandwagon after his falling out over the Astroworld Festival tragedy in 2021. He bounced back in 2023 with the release of his album Utopia, hitting the ground running and refusing to slow down throughout 2024, which saw him re-release his fan-favorite mixtape Days Before Rodeo and tour the globe. He carried all of that momentum and goodwill in to 2025, beginning the year by debuting his new single “4×4” at the College Football Championship and appearing on new projects from The Weeknd and SZA (he says he’s also plotting collaborations with Khruangbin, Sabrina Carpenter, and Taylor Swift). The last time he dropped an album, the Astros won the World Series; it looks like both Houston institutions are going big this season.

If you’ve ever wanted a Big Sean bobblehead, March 25 will be your chance to get one, as the Detroit Pistons host “Big Sean Night” at the Little Caesar’s Arena for their game against the San Antonio Spurs. The Big Sean takeover will feature special features and activations throughout in honor of the Detroit rapper, curated by the hometown hero himself. The halftime, however, will be performed by a different Motor City MC: Nasaan, son of the late Detroit battle rap hero Proof.

In the press release, Sean said: “Being from the city, you all know how much this means to me and the journey we all have to go through to make something of yourself, so I truly appreciate the support. To be able to work with The Pistons as The Creative Director of Innovation is a dream come true, and I can’t wait to bring Don Life to the city.”

In addition to the Big Sean bobbleheads, available through a special charitable ticket package, the Pistons will offer a collection of limited-edition merch designed by Big Sean in the team shops. Proceeds from the special ticket package will benefit the Detroit Pistons Foundation and the Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan via the Sean Anderson Foundation. The first 100 purchases will also include copies of the Uproxx cover star‘s book, Go Higher, and passes to a post-game book talk with Big Sean.

You can find more info about Big Sean Night and get tickets here.

Lately, Neil Young has been performing with his band The Chrome Hearts, and now he’s gearing up to do some more of that: Today (February 24), Young announced a new run of summer tour dates.

The shows kick off in Europe in June before coming to North America the next month. The tour run through to September 15, when it’ll wrap up with a performance at the Hollywood Bowl.

Tickets are available starting February 25 via a pre-sale for Neil Yuong Archives members. A general on-sale follows February 28 and more information can be found here.

Find Young’s tour dates below.

Neil Young And The Chrome Hearts’ 2025 Tour Dates: Love Earth

06/18 — Rättvik, Sweden @ Dalhalla
06/20 — Bergen, Norway @ Bergenhus Fortress
06/22 — Copenhagen, Denmark @ Tiøren
06/26 — Dublin, Ireland @ Malahide Castle
06/30 — Brussels, Belgium @ Brussels Palace Open Air, Palace Square
07/01 — Groningen, Netherlands @ Drafbaan Stedpark
07/03 — Berlin, Germany @ Waldbühne
07/04 — Mönchengladbach, Germany @ Sparkassenpark
07/08 — Stuttgart, Germany @ Cannstatter Wasen
08/08 — Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
08/10 — Richmond, VA @ Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront
08/13 — Detroit, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
08/15 — Cleveland, OH @ Blossom Music Center
08/17 — Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
08/21 — Gilford, NH @ BankNH Pavilion
08/23 — New York, NY @ Northwell at Jones Beach
08/24 — Bethel, NY @ Bethel Center for the Arts
08/27 — Chicago, IL @ Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
09/01 — Denver, CO @ Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre
09/05 — George, WA @ The Gorge
09/06 — Vancouver, BC @ Deer Lake Park
09/10 — Bend, OR @ Hayden Homes Amphitheater
09/12 — Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheater
09/15 — Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl