Category: News

We knew that millions of fans sat down to watch the new season of Yellowstone, though perhaps we didn’t know just how many there were. As it turns out–this show is popular!

The season five premiere of the Kevin Costner-led western drama drew in 12.1 million (!) same-day viewers. According to analytics company Samba TV, Yellowstone is now the top scripted series premiere of 2022. Sorry, Daemon.

The premiere secured 8.8 million viewers in its first airing on the Paramount Network, which then grew to 10.3 million viewers from simulcast airings on CMT, TV Land, and Pop before ultimately climbing to 12.1 million when adding in encore telecasts. For some perspective: the series premiere of House of the Dragon had roughly 10 million fans tuning in this past August. While House of the Dragon has some fun CGI and of course, dragons, Yellowstone appeals to a large part of the US that is often underrepresented: the midwest.

Maybe you haven’t heard of Yellowstone, but it’s probably your distant cousin’s favorite show which follows Costner as Joh Dutton, Montana’s newly-appointed governor, as he protects his family’s ranch from various stressful obstacles. The series began in 2018 and is now in its fifth season, in addition to the popular prequel show 1883 which premiered earlier this year, and the upcoming 1923.

Ashwin Navin, co-founder and CEO of Samba TV, says that this is what sets the series apart from other big-name shows on popular streaming services. “Yellowstone continues to tap into the passions of a broad swath of viewers throughout the American Midwest hungry for Western-themed genres that have been largely underrepresented on television in recent years. Viewership significantly over-indexed for the season premiere within cities such as St. Louis, Cleveland and Pittsburgh and not surprisingly under-indexed in the largely coastal urban centers of San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.”

Despite its growing popularity, creator Taylor Sheridan wants you to know that show isn’t just for your distant Republican relatives. Plus, Harrison Ford is involved now, and he’s cool! So it’s totally fine to watch. There will be millions tuning in right there with you.

Yellowstone seasons 1-4 are now streaming on Peacock.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

Pete Davidson‘s appeal has been explained time and time again — he’s funny, talented, handsome, rich, etc. with a famously big… y’know. But some people can’t seem to understand how he’s dated so many famous and beautiful women, including Ariana Grande (which inspired the iconic song “thank u, next”), Kate Beckinsale, Kim Kardashian, and possibly Emily Ratajkowski. The pair have supposedly been “talking for a couple months now” and they’re in the “very early stages” and “really like each other.”

Here’s more:

A source close to Emily exclusively told E! News that the SNL alum and the Gone Girl actress have “gone on a few dates” together in New York City. While the two have known each other for years, the insider shared that they reconnected after “Pete texted Emily wanting to get together to catch up… Emily thinks Pete is a lot of fun to hang out with,” the source said, adding that the duo have “a flirtatious chemistry right now.”

Nothing has been confirmed (or denied) by either party, although Ratajkowski’s Twitter may have offered a clue. The model and author liked the following tweet from songwriter Dionne Warwick:

To be fair, it’s a Very Good Tweet that over 278,000 people have liked. But still!

Ratajkowski previously explained Davidson’s appeal to women (and men) in an interview with Seth Meyers. “Pete’s, he’s got the height. Obviously women find him very attractive,” she said. “Guys are like, ‘Wow. What’s that guy got?’ And I’m like, I mean, he seems super charming. He’s vulnerable. He’s lovely. His fingernail polish is awesome. He looks good!” Good enough to date? Perhaps.

(Via E! Online)

The best stuff on Inside the NBA tends to happen when the games are over, they’ve decided they don’t wanna be serious anymore, and they just need to kill a few minutes before they sign off for the night and get to go home. When we ranked the best moments in the show’s last decade or so, a fairly common theme was that the most unhinged stuff came late at night when the show was, for all intents and purposes, over.

We got our latest example of this in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Shaquille O’Neal, who is known for having some absolutely bonkers takes about the moon, shared that he has a brand new theory about the moon. You know how our beautiful planet has one moon, a thing that everyone has agreed on for centuries? Well, Shaq’s theory is that there is another.

“I have a new theory,” the mischievous Hall of Fame inductee says. “There’s more than one moon.”

This elicited groans because everyone else knew some nonsense was coming, but Shaq implored that he be given a chance to speak.

“The other day I was riding — past Auburn, as a matter of fact — and the moon was on the left,” Shaq said. “And I keep going straight, didn’t make no turns, and about 20 minutes later, the moon was behind me.”

“It’s cause it was movin’, fool!” Charles Barkley, who is used to this stuff but by no means enjoys it, said.

“There’s more than one moon,” Shaq continued. “And then another 45 seconds, the moon was on my right. There’s more than one moon.”

This now joins the famous segment where Shaq asked how long it takes to fly to the moon in the pantheon of Inside the NBA moments that are designed to give astronomy teachers headaches.

It looks like third time’s the charm for alternative singer Weyes Blood as the songwriter prepares for the release of her upcoming album, And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, this Friday.

Co-produced by Ben Babbitt and Jonathan Rado (of Foxygen), new single “God Turn Me Into A Flower” is much more subdued in nature compared to the Weyes’ previous singles, “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody” and “Grapevine.” But on the other hand, all three tracks remain true to Weyes’ doom-and-gloom songwriting signature. “Grapevine” chronicled her escape from the losing game an emotionally unavailable partner trapped her in. On “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody,” Weyes confessed to her longing for true connection.

Unlike the previous singles, “God Turn Me Into A Flower” intentionally lacks the theatrics. The nearly stripped track doesn’t have much heft in terms of instrumentation, which forces listeners to hyper-focus on Weyes’ vocals. The layering of them creates an echo chambers allowing her tear-jerking lyrics to pierce through.

Often a lone wolf as it relates to her individual work, on “God Turn Me Into A Flower,” Weyes recruited the help of producer Oneohtrix Point Never (real name Daniel Lopatin). However, instead of serving in a production role, Lopatin joined in on the record by way of the synthesizer. Lopatin’s played heightens the coldness Weyes feels in her romantic pursuits.

This track plays more so like a prayer rather than a song. In the stanza, “It always takes me / it’s such a curse to be so hard / you shatter easily / and can’t pick up all those shards / it’s the curse of losing yourself,” Weyes seemingly acknowledges her faults in the relationship but admits that it could never work.

In the lines, “You see the reflection / and you want it more than the truth / you yearn to be that dream / you could never get to,” Weyes doubles down on this sentiment. She later prays to be revealed of this strain as she’d rather be a flower than a person.

Listen to the track above.

Brendan Fraser has been enjoying a career resurgence complete with numerous accolades for his performance in Darren Aronofsky’s The Whale. While the experience has been an emotional journey for the actor, there are some awards that are simply not worth discarding his principle. When asked if he’ll attend the Golden Globes if he’s nominated for Best Actor, Fraser made it clear that he has not forgiven the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for the way it handled his alleged sexual assault by former president Philip Berk.

Via Entertainment Weekly:

“I have more history with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association than I have respect for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association,” he said bluntly. “No, I will not participate.”

His reasoning, for those who have followed the former heartthrob’s rollercoaster career, is obvious: “It’s because of the history that I have with them,” he explained. “And my mother didn’t raise a hypocrite. You can call me a lot of things, but not that.”

Following Fraser’s allegations, the HFPA literally tried to chalk the whole thing up as a joke, which the actor obviously did not appreciate. He refused to co-sign a statement that acknowledged Berk touched him inappropriately, but it meant to be humorous. Fraser blasted the organization for closing ranks as it continued to allow Berk to be a voting member until 2021 when he was expelled for sending out a racist email.

So, yeah, you can see why Brendan Fraser is not in the mood to mingle with that crowd again, and good on him for standing his ground.

(Via Entertainment Weekly)

Every holiday season,
millions of kids send letters asking for everything from a new bike to a pony. Some even make altruistic requests such as peace on Earth or helping struggling families around the holidays.

But wouldn’t the holiday season be even more magical if our pets had their wishes granted, too? That’s why Chewy Claus is stepping up to spread holiday cheer to America’s pets.

Does your dog dream of a month’s supply of treats or chew toys? Would your cat love a new tree complete with a stylish condo? How about giving your betta fish some fresh decor that’ll really tie its tank together?

Or do your pets need something more than mere creature comforts such as life-saving surgery?

via Chewy

“At Chewy, we know pets are a part of the family and we wanted to give them a way to truly participate in the holiday season this year,” said Orlena Yeung, VP of Brand Marketing at Chewy. “Through Chewy Claus, we are hoping to spread joy while recognizing the most important gift that keeps on giving—the love and companionship of our pets.”

To submit your letter to Chewy Claus, just go to
be.chewy.com/chewy-claus or mail a letter to:

Chewy Claus
3251 Hollywood Blvd #401
Hollywood, FL 33021

Not only could your pet’s letter make their holidays even merrier, it will give back, too. For every letter submitted to Chewy Claus, Chewy will donate one pound of food to Greater Good Charities (up to 15,000 pounds). Further, for every product purchased during the Season of Giving, Chewy will match up to $1 million per week in a pet food and supply donation to Greater Good Charities, for a potential total of $10 million.

I’ve got a new dog this year, a one-year-old boxer mix named Archie and I know what he wants this holiday season.

via Chewy

The first letter sent to Chewy Claus came from
True & Faithful Pet Rescue in Venice, FL. The rescue, which focuses on saving senior dogs, was one of the many victims of Hurricane Ian. Their wish was simple; they asked for food for themselves and those in their community.

Chewy Claus delivered by providing a 20-thousand-pound truckload of food to True & Faithful and other shelter and rescue partners in the community. Chewy also assembled a team of volunteers to hold a clean-up day and donated the necessary funds to rebuild their beloved dog beach.

via Chewy

“We are so grateful for Chewy’s support in rehabilitating our space and not only donating thousands of pounds of food to our community, but also providing the help and funds necessary to rebuild our beach,” Lisa Letson, Founder of True & Faithful Pet Rescue told Upworthy. “The beach is our senior dogs’ happy place, where they can live their best lives for the time they have left. It really is a dream come true for us.”

Chewy is the best place to shop for pets this holiday season because it’s the gift that keeps on giving. It’s simple: when you shop, they donate. Chewy will also match customer purchases in the form of a product donation up to $1M per week for a potential total of $10M throughout the season of giving. That means pets living in shelters and rescues will receive toys, treats, food and other essential items this holiday season. Plus, if you write a letter to Chewy Claus, your pet may get their holiday wish and pets in need will get theirs, too—a win win win. Isn’t that what the season is all about?

Willie Nelson is 89 years old, with his 90th birthday coming up in April, and he’s still unbelievably productive. Earlier this year, he released A Beautiful Time, his 72nd solo album and his fourth since 2020. Well, the nominations for the 2023 Grammys were announced yesterday (November 15) and they showed that it’s not just about quantity with Nelson, as his new work is still picking up nominations for music’s biggest awards show.

All in all, he walked away with four nominations: Best Country Solo Performance (“Live Forever”), Best Country Song (“I’ll Love You Till The Day I Die”), Best Country Album (A Beautiful Time), and Best Roots Gospel Album (The Willie Nelson Family). Impressively, those nominations stem from three different projects; “Live Forever” is from Live Forever: A Tribute To Billy Joe Shaver and “I’ll Love You Till The Day I Die” appears on A Beautiful Time.

What may be the most surprising about all this is that Nelson actually isn’t this year’s oldest Grammy nominee. That title goes to 96-year-old Mel Brooks, whose All About Me!: My Remarkable Life In Show Business is nominated for Best Audio Book, Narration, And Storytelling Recording. Other notable older nominees include 88-year-old John Mayall and 86-year-old Buddy Guy, whose projects (The Sun Is Shining Down and The Blues Don’t Lie, respectively) are up for Best Traditional Blues Album.

On a related note, earlier this year, Tony Bennett became the second-oldest person to ever win a Grammy; he was 95 years and 243 days old at the time.

Find the full list of 2023 Grammy nominees here.

Former Bond girl and RHOBH star Denise Richards experienced a terrifying road rage incident earlier this week in Los Angeles. TMZ broke the news and has photos of the truck in which Richards was a passenger while her husband, Aaron Phypers, drove while they noticed that a van was following them.

TMZ describes the scary incident as a “life-threatening” one after the van’s driver “was getting irritated, shouting at them while trying to squeeze in front of them.” The van eventually passed the couple (who was in route to Popsicle Studio, where Denise still worked a full day on Monday after the incident), who later noticed bullet holes in the back of the vehicle. As PEOPLE further reports from a source, the situation accelerated: “[Aaron] could tell — he kept making rights because they were clearly being followed. The guy was obviously pissed behind him.” The source adds that the Denise and Aaron “couldn’t figure it out,” which left them feeling “frantic.”

On Twitter, Denise addressed the subject in a late Tuesday-night tweet, which was a response to a user who wished ill will upon her. “Thank you. I would never wish any harm on anyone. What I experienced yesterday with my husband, not that you care,” Denise wrote. “Was the most terrifying situation I have ever been in. I’m sorry a shot didn’t graze my neck… a**hole.”

As for the “why” of this incident, there’s clearly no rational explanation for road rage, but TMZ relays how “[w]e’re told Aaron was having a tough time finding the place,” and the man apparently flew off the handle. PEOPLE also points out that Aaron attempted to shake the man to no avail. Thankfully, both Aaron and Denise are in one piece, although there’s been no mention of this road-rager’s whereabouts.

(Via TMZ & PEOPLE)

Karin Dreijer is set to release a new album as Fever Ray next March. The album, Radical Romantics, will be supported by a tour, which is set to kick off in Norway.

On their There’s No Place I’d Rather Be tour, Fever Ray will play several dates in Europe, including Copenhagen, Amsterdam, and Brussels. In May, they will arrive to the US and play in select cities, including New York, Boston, Chicago, and Oakland.

Upon the announcement of the tour, Dreijer took to Instagram to let fans know that they can expect not only songs from Radical Romantics, but all of the fan favorites as well. “atm preparing rehearsals and working on new productions from the whole catalogue,” they said in the post’s caption. “hope to see you!

Check out the tour dates below.

03/23/2023 — Oslo, NE @ Sentrum Scene
03/24/2023 — Copenhagen, DK @ VEGA
03/25/2023 — Gothenburg, SE @ GBG Film Studios
03/27/2023 — Riga, LV @ Hanzas Perons
03/28/2023 — Tallinn, EE @ Noblessner Foundry
03/30/2023 — Warsaw, PL @ World Wide Warsaw Festival
04/01/2023 — Amsterdam, NE @ Melkweg
04/03/2023 — Brussels, BE @ Cirque Royal
04/04/2023 — Cologne, DE @ E-Werk
04/06/2023 — Luxembourg City, LU @ Den Atelier
04/07/2023 — The Hague, NE @ Rewire Festival
05/03/2023 — New York, NY @ Terminal 5
05/05/2023 — Boston, MA @ Roadrunner
05/07/2023 — Chicago, IL @ The Salt Shed
05/10/2023 — Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater

Radical Romantics is out 3/10/2023 via Rabid Records. Pre-order it here.

LCD Soundsystem appeared on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert last night to play their first new song in five years, “New Body Rhumba.” Released in September, it appears on the soundtrack for Netflix’s upcoming film, White Noise, as it rolls during the end credits scene. Directed by Noah Baumbach, the song was written specifically for the movie.

An upbeat track, “New Body Rhumba” is inherently catchy, even from the first listen. With layered chants, creative clapping, and a steady drum beat, the band appears to have a genuinely fun time performing it. Lead singer James Murphy also uses the microphone to shift his voice throughout, as the song’s verses are his clearest vocals. Halfway through, the energy shifts, and so do the lights. Reflecting off the disco ball to create a space-like stage design, it mirrors the electronic, futuristic sound — and the themes of the movie.

“new music alert. noah baumbach asked me to make a song again — this time for his brilliant new film WHITE NOISE,” Murphy shared on the official LCD Instagram. “we’d both read the book, and we’re friends, so there you go.” The film arrives in theaters on November 25 and on Netflix starting December 30.

In addition, LCD Soundsystem are kicking off their 20-show residency at Brooklyn Steel on November 18. More information on dates and ticketing is available here.

Watch LCD Soundsystem perform “New Body Rhumba” on Colbert above.