Category: News

Following a guilty verdict for Tory Lanez for shooting Megan Thee Stallion in 2020, several fans have shown their support. As Megan was met with online vitriol over the course of the past two years, her supporters are celebrating a feat of justice. Also showing support are several of her peers and fellow musicians in the industry.

Fellow Houston rapper Monaleo took to Twitter to express her gratitude as Megan received justice, saying, “This is major for her and for every other black women who has been taunted for speaking up about abuse and violence against them.”

She followed up, urging people to “Believe black women the FIRST time around.”

Sharing a similar sentiment was singer Tinashe, who said, “Sending love and healing to
@theestallion #ProtectBlackWomen”

Singer and Glass Onion star Janelle Monáe also took time to send Megan “the (((biggest hug))) (((love))) & (((peace)))”

Rapper Baby Tate also was happy to hear the verdict, and expressed her wishes for Megan to find the peace she deserves.

“I can’t imagine the nightmare that this past two years has been for you @theestallion and I know that this verdict won’t erase that but I pray it helps you on your journey to finding peace and healing! We love you,” she said.

Singer, songwriter, and producer Finneas, who has previously spoken of his fandom for Megan, shared a short sentiment, “Megan thee stallion forever,” following the announcement of the verdict.

Fellow Texan Bobby Sessions, who previously collaborated with Meg on the Coming 2 America soundtrack cut “I’m A King,” celebrated Lanez’s guilty verdict, noting that “Megan is God’s Favorite.”

Some of the artists mentioned are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Snoop Dogg has shared a lot of intriguing stories about his stoner escapades, from disproving claims he smokes 75-150 joints a day to launching a THC-infused chip brand. However, his recent re-reveal about the “most stoned” he’s ever been just might take the cake… Or the blunt.

To absolutely nobody’s surprise, Snoop was outsmoked by country legend Willie Nelson — resulting in a truly hilarious story that involves 4/20 and some KFC.

“We was in Amsterdam on 4/20 and he was doing a concert out there,” Snoop shared on the Let’s Go! podcast alongside Tom Brady, Larry Fitzgerald and Jim Gray. “He performed on the 19th and I performed on the 20th. So we went back to his hotel room and we was playing dominoes. Willie had a vape, a joint, I had a blunt and he had a pipe.

“So me and him were playing dominoes one-on-one. He whooping my ass, and I’m just getting higher and higher and higher,” he continued. “And he just keep passing it to me, and I’m like, ‘This old m*thaf*cka’s outsmoking me,’ and I’m trying to stop but I can’t ’cause I don’t wanna show no signs of weakness.”

As the story goes, Snoop’s muchies set in.

“15 minutes into the session, I say, ‘Willie, let’s get something to eat, man,’” Snoop said. “And we go to Kentucky Fried Chicken, right, so we in the back of the van and when they bring the chicken from the drive-thru, they give it to us and me and Willie put our hands in the bucket at the same time. And we grab the same piece of chicken, Tom. And I look at him and say, ‘It’s yours, cuz.’”

Snoop’s story builds on his interviews on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel Live! from years ago, where he spilled and named Nelson, Cheech and Chong, and Bob Marley as the Mount Rushmore of stoners.

There has certainly been no shortage of Drake music this year. Back in June, he dropped his seventh studio album, Honestly, Nevermind, and in November, he dropped Her Loss, a collaborative album with 21 Savage.

Just in time for the holidays, the rapper has revealed a fresh new candle called “Winter Warmth.”

Drake revealed “Winter Warmth” with a Game Of Thrones-esque trailer. The trailer features clips of arctic tundra juxtaposed with the candle spinning around. Toward the end of the trailer, B.G.O.T.I’s 1995 hit, “Give Me Your Lov-N,” plays, as the name of the candle is seen on-screen.

Fans can purchase the candle via Better World Fragrance House, where Drake released a series of candles last year. Some of the previously-released candles include “Williamsburg Sleepover,” “Sweeter Tings,” “Good Thoughts,” and “Muskoka.”

“Winter Warmth,” which will run customers $48 plus shipping, is described as having a “fruity, cozy scent filled with Fresh Mint, Apples, and Soft Musks nuanced with Strawberry and Balsam creates a decadent wintery fragrance, reminiscent of taking a walk through the city streets,” on the shop’s website.

As 2022 proved to be a good year for Drake, he shared in an interview with sports betting app Stake that he intends to make 2023 just as fruitful, if not more.

“I just really want to continue down the path that I’m on,” he said. “I feel extremely healthy. I feel like I’m in the best shape, mentally and physically, of my life. I’ve been spending so much time with my family and my son. It’s just been amazing. I feel like I finally found this comfort point where I’m able to genuinely disconnect from all the noise of the world and be able to live my life, without being a recluse.”

Barack Obama has shared his highly-anticipated year-end lists for 2022, including one for the songs he loved the most. While Obama has some obvious picks, as artists like Maggie Rogers (included for “That’s Where I Am”) and SZA (included for “Shirt”) have made the list in previous years, he also did some artist discovery this year it seems.

He included Ethel Cain’s “American Teenager” and Rosalía’s “Saoko,” from her album, Motomami. Obama also loved releases by Bad Bunny, Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, and Lizzo while spotlighting rising artists like Sudan Archives, Omar Apollo, Ayra Starr, Rema, Plains, Zach Bryan, and more.

“I always enjoy sharing my end of year music playlist with all of you — and this year we heard a lot of great songs,” he captioned. “Here are some of my favorites. Are there any songs or artists I should check out?”

Some of the artists who were included on Obama’s favorites of 2022 have also started responding. “did not have a former president including my anti-war, anti-patriotism fake pop song on his year end list on my 2022 bingo,” Cain posted on Twitter.

As for the public’s reactions to Obama’s playlist, social media users have been disappointed by the lack of Drake and Taylor Swift, as well as suggesting he checks out Goose, Arctic Monkeys, and other 2022 albums before December ends.

Some of the artists mentioned are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Brockhampton may have dropped their final two albums last month, however, it appears they’ve got a few more gifts for fans before they disband for good. Yesterday (December 22), Kevin Abstract took to social media to unveil a teaser for their upcoming Christmas special.

In a video clip shared to Twitter and Instagram, Euphoria actress Hunter Schafer is seen having dinner with someone in a restaurant and describing a rather scary, vivid dream she had the night before. She tells the person across from her that he was in it, and says the same thing to a person sitting next to her offscreen. The camera then cuts to the person, who is revealed to be Brockhampton member Kevin Abstract, whose real name is Clifford Ian Simpson.

“Hello,” Abstract says. “You’re just in time. Welcome to the Christmas special. I’m Ian Simpson, and we have a few stories we want to tell you guys.”

The screen then presents text reading “Xmas Special Vol. 1”

Brockhampton has been teasing the Christmas special the Christmas special over the course of the past week, with images and clips that appear to have been shot on an old camcorder.

Check out the preview of the Christmas special above.

The special is expected to drop tonight (December 23) at a yet-to-be-announced time on a yet-to-be-announced platform.

Heading into their Christmas Day showdown against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Golden State Warriors sit at 11th in the Western Conference with a 15-18 record. The defending champs have struggled defensively early in the season, ranking just 25th in defensive rating after being elite on that end of the floor last season. To make matters worse, Stephen Curry recently suffered a shoulder injury that will sideline him for at least another month.

After a 1-5 skid on their last road trip, Draymond Green spoke bluntly about the current state of the team. Via ESPN:

“Right now, I think we are very fragile,” Green said after Friday’s practice. “You start going through these things and then you start believing them. Once you start believing them, it becomes who you are. The only way to break them is by being mentally tough.”

Golden State have tried to replace the veteran talent they lost in the offseason with their brigade of young players, but the results so far have been mixed. Moses Moody has taken a step sideways instead of forward. James Wiseman still looks a ways away from being a rotation player. And although Jonathan Kuminga shows flashes, he still doesn’t provide the consistency necessary for title contention. While the Warriors have tended to be pretty good when their starting five have been on the floor, they have a serious lack of depth that will need to be figured out sooner rather than later, particularly with Curry sidelined.

One good thing has come out of Elon Musk’s Twitter it seems: a surprise uniting interaction between a ’90s band and a famous supermodel. After Eve 6, frequent social media jokesters known for their song “Inside Out” replied to one of Musk’s many posts, a stranger tried to dunk on the band by calling them a “one hit wonder.”

“Not to split hairs but we are objectively a one hit wonder,” Eve 6 replied. It turns out they would still get the last laugh, not once, but twice.

Chrissy Teigen surprisingly chimed in, revealing that not only was she a fan, but the band isn’t a total one-hit wonder like they think. She’s gotten emotional over one of their other songs that isn’t the “heart in a blender” one.

“Wait. You are ACTUALLY eve 6 as in here’s to the night as in I cried in the mirror to you,” she replied.

“Yes hi chrissy teigen,” the band jokingly added back.

From there, Teigen sent a picture of her husband John Legend lying in bed, as he is convinced clearly to listen to “Here’s To The Night” on Spotify. “oh my god making john listen in bed,” she captioned.

She also replied to a fan, confirming he didn’t know the song, but did enjoy it. “He can’t remember but he says “it’s a well made record” ladies and gentlemen we got one,” Teigen said.

Continue scrolling for some of Eve 6 and Chrissy Teigen’s conversation, as well as some lighthearted fan reactions.

Tory Lanez has been found guilty of shooting Megan Thee Stallion in the foot in 2020, according to multiple in-court sources, including Law Crime News’ Meghann Cuniff and Los Angeles Times’ Jonah Valdez.

The trial against Tory wrapped up today with both the prosecution and Tory’s defense giving their closing arguments. The jury was given leave to deliberate at 11:15 Thursday am and returned the verdict at 3:30 pm Friday. Evidence presented in the trial included gunshot residue on Lanez, witness testimony, and texts from Tory that suggested he had apologized for the incident. While Megan testified, Tory did not.

Tory was accused of charged with committing assault with a firearm causing great bodily injury; concealing a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle; and discharging a firearm with gross negligence after the July 2020 incident, in which Megan was left with bullet fragments in both feet. He avoided a fourth witness tampering charge for allegedly offering to bribe Megan due to the judge denying the motion to introduce a late charge after the trial had begun.

A contentious build-up to the trial followed, with Tory maintaining his innocence and apparently waging a behind-the-scenes press campaign to make it seem as if Megan was “framing” him for the shooting, which he suggested was committed by her friend Kelsey Harris, who was with them at the time.

While Tory saw his fortunes fall in the immediate wake of the shooting, Megan said that the scrutiny she faced during the intervening two years made her wish she’d died instead of being injured.

Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Not every moment is our best and sometimes those not-so-great moments are caught on tape or, in Jacinda Ardern’s case, over a hot mic. Ardern is the prime minister of New Zealand and recently, during a parliamentary debate, she was feeling a bit frustrated with a colleague, ACT leader David Seymour. During the exchange, Ardern turned to her deputy and muttered “arrogant prick,” referencing Seymour, who was apparently on the prime minister’s last nerve.

The problem was, her mic was still on and picked up the hushed insult so others could hear. Probably not her proudest moment but, to be fair, they were discussing really heavy stuff like hate-speech and immigration. She didn’t let the comment hang in the air, according to RNZ. Seymour told reporters that the prime minister texted him shortly afterward to apologize.

Later, the two were photographed holding a framed copy of the parliamentary debate where the insult was hurled. Turns out they’ve used the moment to raise money for the Prostate Cancer Foundation by allowing people to bid on the framed debate via Trade Me.

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Surprisingly, the framed photo has been viewed almost a half million times, with more than 280 bids, according to RNZ. Which makes you wonder if people have really strong feelings about Seymour being an “arrogant prick” or if they were just good Samaritans donating money solely based on the charity. I’m going to assume the world will never know, unless the winner of the auction would like to come forward and explain why they spent so much money on a transcript of the exchange.

After having a laugh about it, Jacinda Ardern and I are going to auction a signed copy of the Hansard (official record) of her calling me an “arrogant prick” to raise money for pricks everywhere, a great cause, the Prostate Cancer Foundation. https://t.co/6QJ0bV73Zc pic.twitter.com/5FzIzqUiQf

— David Seymour (@dbseymour) December 15, 2022

If you’re curious what the highest bid was, it was $62,899 (100,100 New Zealand dollars). Now, there’s something to get excited about, and if you ask Seymour, he’s happy about the outcome of the disagreement. Seymour told RNZ, “Taking the particular politicians out of it, it makes me so proud to be a kiwi. Political commentators have said to me they couldn’t imagine this in any other country, not even Australia, and I think that says something special about New Zealand’s culture and politics that we should always seek to hold on to.”

Overall, it seems that Seymour was a good sport about the entire situation. He accepted Ardern’s apology and said that he’s been called much worse. Others in the chambers were also on board with supporting the prime minister’s lapse in filter.

It’s great to see politicians coming together to not only move beyond an unfortunate moment but to turn it into an opportunity to raise money for a good cause. I’m sure there will be more lively debates that come out of parliament chambers but it seems like they’ve got a handle on how to make lemonade when needed.

You can watch the entire exchange below to hear the expensive insult:

The ethics of honesty are always interesting to explore. Most of us agree that being honest is morally good, but is it important to always tell the truth, no matter what? What if the truth will only hurt someone’s feelings? Is it always wrong to lie? What if a lie will save someone’s life? Is there a moral difference between stretching the truth and completely demolishing it? Does it depend on why people are doing it?

The reasons people lie are many and varied, of course. But new research gives us some insights into the most common motivations for lying, and surprisingly, the findings are actually pretty heartwarming.

A study published in the Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science in October 2022 looked at the link between personality and lying motivation, as well as the most common reasons people lie. In the study, a group of 257 people were questioned about their lying frequency, lying motivations and personality traits (using the HEXACO Personality Inventory, which measures honesty-humility, emotionality, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness to experience).

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An analysis of the research by Arash Emamzadeh in Psychology Today detailed the findings, which revealed 11 motives for lying:

1. To avoid judgment or shame

2. To avoid punishment

3. Protected from retaliation

4. No “good reason” (basically compulsive lying)

5. To impress others

6. To get a reward

7. Carelessness and impulsiveness

8. To get pleasure out of deceiving people

9. To keep a personal info secret

10. Prosocial reasons that lead to happiness (e.g., telling kids Santa is real)

11. Altruistic reasons (to protect others from harm)

As Emamzadeh pointed out, the first nine motivations on the list are self-serving, while the last two are oriented toward benefiting other people. And while we might assume that most lying is done for selfish reasons, the study actually found the opposite. The top three reasons people reported lying were altruistic reasons, prosocial reasons and avoidance of being judged.

So the biggest reason people lie is to help others. Who knew?

Of course, personality plays a role in why and how often people lie. The study found that lying in general is common, but also found that certain HEXACO personality traits are correlated with more and less frequent lying, as well as different motivations for lying.

People high in the honesty-humility trait were less likely to lie and the majority of lying motivations didn’t apply to them. Not surprising.

The emotionality trait (sensitivity/anxiety) was associated with lying to avoid unpleasant or awkward feelings as well as altruism.

Individuals high in extraversion tended to lie more for self-centered reasons and were less likely to lie to keep personal information secret.

Highly agreeable people tended to lie less to avoid punishment or shame or to impress others and also weren’t prone to compulsive lying.

Those high in conscientiousness reported lying less frequently and lying less for self-serving reasons, while those low in this trait were more likely to compulsively lie and to enjoy deceiving people.

People most open to new experiences tended to lie for prosocial, others-serving reasons.

Most of the correlations between personality traits and lying are fairly unsurprising, but it is reassuring to know that some behavior and motivation can be predictable.

It’s also reassuring to know that most lies aren’t as selfish as we might assume they are. Philosophers have long debated the existence and merits of the noble or virtuous lie, and there are compelling arguments for and against lying for morally justifiable reasons. But at the very least, the fact that most lying is done to help others tells us that we are more prone to looking out for one another than we are to serving ourselves. And that’s a solid plus one for humanity.