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The music world has gotten some rough news in recent months in the death of a number of influential artists. The latest name to that sad list is Bob Kulick, a guitarist with a long list of credits to his name including one of the most beloved songs in the history of cartoons.

Consequence of Sound reported Friday that Kulick died at the age of 70, a note confirmed by his brother Bruce in a Facebook post.

Kulick was a veteran session guitarist who actually auditioned to be in KISS in 1972, missing out on the gig to Ace Frehley. He’d performed with a number of musical legends over his career, working with Lou Reed, Meat Loaf and others like Diana Ross. He was also reportedly the brains and bars behind the SpongeBob SquarePants song “Sweet Victory.”

Over the years, Bob also did session work for Diana Ross, Michael Bolton, and W.A.S.P., and produced Motörhead’s Grammy Award-winning song “Whiplash”. More recently, he composed, produced, and performed the SpongeBob SquarePants song “Sweet Victory”, which appeared in the episode “Band Geeks”.

The song actually had a bit of a resurgence in 2019 when fans created a groundswell of support to make it part of the Super Bowl halftime show. Despite SpongeBob not actually performing, the song did make its way into the show as an introduction for Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode.”

That, in turn, made the song even more popular on streaming services in the wake of its use. Kulick’s career has a number of achievements more notable and influential than a song from Season 2 of SpongeBob SquarePants, but it’s yet another part of music history lost in what’s already been a strange and difficult year.

[via Consequence of Sound]

The NBA is gearing up to join other leagues with an official restart plan next week. According to reports from ESPN on Friday, the league is expected to have its ownership vote on a potential plan to restart and finish the season that’s been on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic since mid-March.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that owners are set to vote on the plan on Thursday, and as details leak out about the potential plan we now know that 20 or 22 teams in playoff contention are expected to restart an abbreviated regular season before deciding playoff seeding and which teams will make the traditional 16-team cut.

The 20 or 22-team restart would keep teams already out of postseason contention at home, which was a topic that got some considerable coverage earlier in the week when some players publicly spoke against potentially joining the bubble league with little to play for.

The important note in the reporting is that owners are largely expected to approve of the measure, which means the vote is merely a formality and basketball will, indeed, return to play later this summer as long as the health and safety of players, coaches and essential staff can be maintained amid the still-ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

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Unless you’ve been deep down in the wrestling cave, you already know what’s going on in Minneapolis, Minnesota. George Floyd was brutally, unjustifiably murdered by police, trapped on the ground with a knee to his neck. That has led to massive protests in the city, which the police have escalated to violence that the protestors are now being blamed for. Meanwhile similar protests are happening in Louisville, Kentucky, in the name of Breonna Taylor, a black woman who was murdered by police who invaded her home.

All over the United States and the world, people are speaking out against police violence, and in support of the communities that disproportionately face it. Quite a few WWE Superstars, as well as wrestlers from AEW, Impact, and elsewhere are making their voices heard on the subject.

WWE Superstar turned Hollywood actor Dave Bautista expressed his feelings in a no-holds-barred Instagram video:

Titus O’Neil, who consistently seems like one of the best people in WWE (despite the fact that we never see him on WWE TV), also had a lot to say.

But plenty more in the wrestling community spoke out in support of Floyd, Taylor, and other victims of racist violence:

And many have also shown support for the protests that are being demonized by the President and much of the media:

Sami Zayn also posted this video of the great James Baldwin speaking on the slow march of “progress”:

While NXT Manager Malcolm Bivens offered some words from Malcolm X:

Bivens, Liv Morgan, and others also shared their financial support of the Minnesota Freedom Fund, who are bailing out protestors, and encouraged others to give as well.

It’s important to note that this isn’t a complete list of wrestlers who are on the right side of this issue. A lot of people are RTing other people’s posts (particularly Naomi’s), or posting the same few images without additional text, and obviously those weren’t included here. Wrestling can feel like a pretty sketchy business sometimes, and it’s honestly encouraging in a dark time like this to see so many of the performers we admire standing up for justice.

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Charles Barkley spoke out Friday about two recent instances of violence against people of color, condemning the death of Ahmaud Arbery while jogging in Georgia earlier this month and the death of George Floyd while in police custody earlier this week. Floyd’s death has sparked protests and rioting in Minnesota, once again bringing the subject of police brutality against people of color to the forefront.

NBA players like former Pacer Stephen Jackson, who considered Floyd his “best friend” and his “twin,” have spoken out about the incident, and Barkley joined the chorus of players hoping for better treatment of the black community and

Barkley spoke with Ernie Johnson on The Stream Room on Friday and shared his thoughts about the tragedy that’s unfolding in Minnesota and connected it to another death that drew nationwide outrage in recent weeks. He called the incidents “tragic” and explained his stance on discussing race with others.

“I always feel uncomfortable talking about race because I think very few people have what I call a pure heart. What I mean by a pure heart I mean you have to go into a conversation I don’t have my mind made up, I just want to be fair and honest,” Barkley said. “I just feel sadness about the situation in Georgia: kid out for a jog, he ends up dying. No one wants to see a kid die. And that should never happen. There’s no excuses, that should never happen.”

With Floyd’s death in police hands, especially after footage of him pinned down while an officer kneeled on his neck, Barkley said the incident was particular troubling.

“The thing in Minnesota is really distressing,” Barkley said, noting the video is especially tough to watch. “Clearly the man is subdued. And like I say, I always try to give the cops the benefit of the doubt because I don’t have the courage to in their shoes. But man, that cannot happen under any circumstances whatsoever.”

Barkley said people who struggle with addressing these incidents need to be honest with themselves and support people of color who are asking for justice and positive changes to be made in the wake of tragedy.

“Some of these guys have to take a look at themselves and go ‘Yo, man, that ain’t right.’ I still don’t want those people out their rioting and things like that because that don’t help,” Barkley said. “I think the cops and the public got to get together, especially the black community, and say ‘How can we help somebody?’”

Johnson agreed and said it “defied all description and all sense” to see what was captured on video, and the terrible result of what seemed to be clear police brutality against another person of color. Barkley’s final message was that people need to put aside racial differences and restore justice in Floyd’s death.

“It’s just do the right thing. Let’s don’t worry about who’s black, who’s white, who’s jewish and who’s hispanic,” Barkley said. “Let’s just do the right thing.”

Barkley said his heart was “broken” for Floyd and his family and the community impacted by his death, a sentiment that’s been widely across the NBA and sports communities.

If we wanted to, we could highlight a new refreshing, summery cocktail every week until the season was a long-forgotten memory. From the negroni to the gin & tonic to the daiquiri, there seem to be more refreshing cocktails than scorching days on which to sip them. Still, we’ll try our damndest.

Since most of the country got blasted with ridiculously hot weather recently (with more on the horizon), we figured it’s time to prepare for the next heatwave. And whenever the thermometer nears triple digits we’re going to keep cool while drinking mojitos.

“The mojito is all about highlighting strong, sweet and sour, with a straight spirit, sweetener and fresh citrus and mint,” says Nicole Quist, beverage director at Bartaco in Aventura, Florida. “It’s also one of the most refreshing, rum-based cocktails you can mix up.”

When it comes to picking the right rum for the job, it’s best to avoid flavored or dark rums (unless you’re into that sort of thing). Light and drinkable is the name of the game here.

“With the mojito, I always go with a white rum so that the spirit is noticed without overpowering the delicate nature of the mint and citrus,” says Zack Musick, beverage director at Merriman’s in Hawaii.

Since we’re in the business of helping you craft better cocktails, we want to make sure you buy the right rum for this drink (here are some recipes, too!). To aide our cause, we asked some of our favorite bartenders to tell us the best rums for a refreshing, thirst-quenching mojito.

Bacardi Superior Rum

Danny Caffall, lead bartender at The Mansion Bar at Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek in Dallas

Bacardi Superior. It’s like it was made for mojitos. It takes on the flavor of the mint and citrus so well and is light, crisp, and not too over-powering. The mojito is one of those drinks that is best kept simple. Bacardi Superior is readily available and perfect for the hot summer afternoons.

Tiburon Rum

Nancy Conaway, bartender at Republic Street Bar in Fort Worth, Texas

If I’m making a mojito, I use Tiburon Rum. It’s a Belizean rum that’s small batch and aged, plus super smooth with a fabulous Caribbean feel that’s sure to make any mojito a hit.

Caña Brava White Rum

Zack Musick, beverage director at Merriman’s in Hawaii

While going with a classic Cuban rum will hold onto the integrity of a classic mojito, I prefer to use the Panamanian rum, Caña Brava developed by the 86 Company. Caña Brava is modeled after the clean crisp Cuban style and will typically cost less than $30. To make this rum, the 86 Company partnered with master distiller, Don Pancho, a Cuban native who learned the “Cuban Method” of distillation through 35 years of experience before moving to Panama to continue the traditional methods he learned in Cuba.

Plantation 3 Stars Rum

Kenneth McCoy, chief creative officer at The Rum House in New York City

I use Plantation 3 Stars White Rum. This Caribbean blend of Jamaican, Barbados, and Trinidad rums is smooth, with flavors of sweet grass and coconut. It’s perfect in a mojito or a Daiquiri.

Cruzan Coconut Rum

Robert Swain Jr., owner of OnTheRoX Bartending Services in the British Virgin Islands

I know it’s unorthodox in the bartending world, but I prefer to use a sweet rum in my mojito, that way I eliminate using simple syrup or sugar. Any flavored Cruzan works for me, but my top choices are coconut or vanilla. Smooth and very flavorful.

Flor de Caña 4 Year Extra Seco Rum

Nicole Quist, beverage director at Bartaco in Aventura, Florida

At Bartaco, we love Flor de Caña 4 Year Extra Seco Rum out of Nicaragua, a Spanish style rum, and are proud to partner with a fair trade certified and sustainably produced, naturally aged rum. We shake up flor de Caña in the moment muddled limes, and the result is a pure, refreshing cocktail where the natural vanilla and clean citrus notes of the rum itself shine.

Havana Club 3-Year-Old Rum

James Simpson, beverage director at Espita in Washington, DC

The best Mojito Rum has to be Havana Club 3 Year. The rich sugar cane flavor and light oak is perfect for the citrusy minty cocktail. Bonus points if you can get a hold of the right mint species grown in Cuba [M. nemorosa].

Probitas White Rum

Tim Wiggins, co-owner and beverage director of Yellowbelly in St. Louis

Probitas White Rum is my favorite mojito rum because it has a creamy texture and soft coconut tones without any sweetness. The best mojito rums should be crisp and dry. I think there are so many rums not to use in a mojito so I could really go down a rabbit hole there.

Charanda Uruapan Blanco Rum

Stephen Kurpinsky, U.S. brand ambassador for Mr Black Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur

Charanda Urupuan Blanco Rum is great to use for a Mojito. It’s an amazingly complex, interesting rum that comes in at a great price. This half cane/half molasses-based rum hails from Michoacan, Mexico, and will blow you away with both savory and sweet notes.

Writer’s Pick:

Diplomatico Planas Rum

This un-aged rum from Venezuela is so silky and smooth you’ll want to drink it on its own. But, the underlying vanilla and coconut flavors are perfectly suited to be mixed with muddled mint, lime, and soda water to create the most refreshing mojitos imaginable.

Jucee Froot‘s star continues to rise as her brand of raunchy rap branches out into even more new avenues in the wake of her debut mixtape, Black Sheep. She won’t even let being on quarantine stop her as she uses the opportunity to shoot a trippy, sexed-up video for her new single “Eat Itself,” which features on the star-studded soundtrack to HBO’s Insecure after debuting in the second episode of the show’s fourth season.

The video, directed by SpikeZee and Foreign Skooly, is was shot by Jucee herself as she cavorts in her tub with colorful embellishments in the form of dancing cartoon fruit and video game-esque graphic transitions., Jucee flaunts her impressive collection of tattoos in a skimpy swimsuit while taunting a timid lover, “It ain’t gon’ eat itself.”

“Eat Itself” isn’t the first song Jucee Froot landed on a soundtrack. In 2019, she contributed to the soundtrack for Birds Of Prey with “Danger,” telling Uproxx that the departure “was something new for me… I’m real happy that I did it. I got new fans from overseas.” Keep an eye out for the Memphis rapper as her buzz builds — she’s got all the makings of a star.

Watch Jucee Froot’s ‘Eat Itself’ video above.

Jucee Froot is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Jason Momoa is peak Hawaii bro (so much so that he filed a trademark for his “Aloha J” trademark), but although he was born in the Paradise of the Pacific, he was actually raised in Iowa. Norwalk, Iowa, specifically, which is approximately 20 minutes away from the Waveland Cafe in Des Moines, where the Aquaman star visited on Thursday.

“What a great surprise today! Yes, that’s right folks, Jason came in today with his family to have some delicious breakfast!” the diner, which claims to have the “best breakfast” in Des Moines, Iowa (that’s like being the world’s smallest big-screen TV, but the photos do look tasty). “He downed the momoa (full hashbrown with a full biscuits and gravy right on top followed by 2 sunny side up eggs and a side of bacon) in less than 10 minutes!” Ten minutes? I could finish that in five, and I look like Super Bowl commercial Jason Momoa:

Thank you, Jason Momoa, for coming in during this crazy time and supporting us, it truly means a lot to every one of us! P.S. He even wanted to change in to one of our waveland shirts.

And in case you’re wondering, he wore a mask while posing for photos. My man.

(Via Des Moines Register)