Category: News

Elon Musk spoke to Twitter employees on Thursday for the first time since his $44 billion acquisition was announced in April. It went… remember the scene from There’s Something About Mary where Ben Stiller goes to Cameron Diaz’s house to pick her up for prom, and he ends up getting his you-know-what stuck in his zipper? It went like that.

During the all-hands meeting, Musk appeared “via a crappy cell phone camera feed,” according to the Daily Beast, and “took bizarre tangents, including briefly discussing aliens and noting that he had dubbed himself the ‘techno-king’ of Tesla.” (He’s becoming more like Kendall Roy with each passing day.) A source described the hour-long talk as “pure chaos” and that Musk only answered pre-screened questions.

The meeting opened with a question, delivered by chief marketing officer Leslie Berland, asking Musk why he loved Twitter. “I swear he’s stuttering and babbling,” the employee told the Daily Beast of Musk’s rambling reply. He eventually landed on a more cogent response about the value of self-expression. Musk then railed “on about getting rid of bots,” the person added, “which is so f*cking rich,” considering his proclivity for trolling on the platform.

Musk gallantly vowed to get Twitter up to one billion daily active users (it was at 229 million, as of March), and that he wants the social media platform to contribute to society by helping people “better understand the nature of the universe, as much as it is possible to understand.” He also said he’ll allow some “pretty outrageous tweets.”

But Twitter already does that:

Outrageous!

(Via the Daily Beast)

Just when you thought the Marilyn Monroe/Kim Kardashian dress saga had ended (did anyone really think that?), the drama continues! This time, Ripley’s is firing back at Monroe historians and collectors who claim that Kardashian ruined the $4.8 million dress when she wore it on the Met Gala red carpet, which was over a month ago, in case you are keeping track.

After The Marilyn Monroe Collection spotted noticeable differences in the fabric of the dress, they shifted the blame to Ripley’s, who granted Kardashian access to the iconic gown. Everyone weighed in, including some Monroe historians and Trevor Noah, of course, and it was revealed that Ripley’s was even advised against loaning the dress for fear of it being damaged further. Social media users took to Twitter to blast both Kardashian and Ripley’s though Ripley’s is not taking this laying down.

The company released a statement saying that there was no more damage done to the dress when Kardashian wore it, and while the dress is damaged, it has been that way since before Ripley’s even acquired the dress in 2016. A source stated: “A report written on the dress’s condition in early 2017 states, ‘a number of the seams are pulled and worn. This is not surprising given how delicate the material is. There is puckering at the back by the hooks and eyes’ among other instances of damage.’”

Ripley’s VP of Publishing Amanda Joiner added, “From the bottom of the Met steps, where Kim got into the dress, to the top where it was returned, the dress was in the same condition it started in.” Kardashian wore a fur jacket over the back, to cover up the parts that didn’t zip. Despite the ordeal, and with a ton of Marilyn media coverage as of late, it’s sad that the public cannot just let this poor woman rest!

The Philadelphia Eagles are one of the most interesting teams in the NFL as we approach the start of the 2022 season. The team went 9-8 and earned a Wild Card spot in the NFC last year behind a 6-1 stretch towards the end of the year. With second-year head coach Nick Sirianni, another year of development for Jalen Hurts, the acquisition of AJ Brown at wide receiver alongside DeVonta Smith, and a defense that added a pair of standouts from last year’s indomitable Georgia Bulldogs team in the Draft, Philly looks like a team that could make the postseason for the fifth time in six years.

And they will try to do that with a new wordmark for their logo that freakin’ stinks. The team announced the news on Thursday that they stripped away the design that made the word “EAGLES” look like an eagle. Instead, they went in a more modern (read: worse) direction by taking the word “EAGLES,” italicizing it, and then … I dunno it looks like they tried to cut a slice of pizza out of both of the E’s.

The good news is that, per Shamus Clancy of Philly Voice, it “should not replace the ‘Eagles head’ brand mark, which will continue to serve as the team’s primary logo.” The bad news is that any striving for a sleek, modern design in a rebrand has fallen to 0-for-every time. Maybe next time!

Every now and then, Britney Spears surprises fans by deactivating her Instagram account. Well, she did it again, as her Instagram account is not currently accessible. The first tweets of fans noticing Spears’ Instagram deactivation started popping up today at around 12:45 p.m. ET.

It’s not currently clear why Spears has decided to take her Instagram offline, although it’s possible she has a similar mindset to when she and now-husband Sam Asghari got engaged: In September 2021, Spears explained via Twitter, “Don’t worry folks … just taking a little break from social media to celebrate my engagement !!!! I’ll be back soon.”

Spears’ latest deactivation comes shortly after her June 9 wedding. Following the ceremony, Spears shared multiple gleeful posts about her big day. A few days after that, she took some time to address her brother Bryan Spears and rumors that he was invited to the wedding, writing, “You were never invited to my wedding so why even respond ??? […] I know you’re my blood and yes blood runs deep but no family of mine would do what you guys did to me. […] GO F*CK YOURSELF Bryan – F*ck you [middle finger emoji] …”

Meanwhile, on a potentially relevant note, in April, Spears expressed her discontent with some ways in which online life has changed the world, writing on Instagram, “I’m sharing this because we all seem to alienate behind our phones and computers … I’ve never opened a computer my whole life … just a phone. […] I say all this but I will probably buy a computer today !!!”

Things have gotten so bad for Mike Lindell that now, even Walmart won’t sell his MyPillow products.

The professional voter fraud conspiracy theory pusher has spent the past year — and over $35 million of his own money — trying to prove that Donald Trump actually won the 2020 presidential election. He’s helped concoct elaborate stories about dead Venezuelan presidents influencing voting technology, claimed to have proof of ballots being destroyed, and promised multiple times to personally reinstate Trump as president after Joe Biden’s win. Of course, none of that happened. What has happened? Lindell has been sued for billions by companies like Dominion Voting and state governments that spent hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to disprove his wild theories. He’s also lost a ton of business, with retailers pulling his pillows from their shelves.

But the final nail in his coffin might’ve just come from Walmart, who just joined companies like Kohls, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Sam’s Club, and Costco in dropping all of Lindell’s MyPillow products from their stores. Lindell shared the news on his socials and filmed a Facebook Live video in which he claimed to offer his products at a reduced rate but top Walmart execs just weren’t interested.

“You guys are canceling us, just like the other box stores,” Lindell said during the video. “It’s devastating. That’s $100 million in wholesale sales that we don’t have anymore. Shame on you Walmart, you’re disgusting!”

Former Trump legal advisor Jenna Ellis shared the news, asking MAGA supporters to help Lindell boost sales on Twitter.

Watch Lindell’s full meltdown on Facebook.

Cambridge, Massachusetts rhymer Millyz is a longtime veteran of the rap business, independently releasing albums and mixtapes since 2013. Over the years, he’s worked with other established forces in street rap like Dave East, G Herbo, and Jadakiss, and appeared in the 2016 BET Hip-Hop Awards Cypher. Though he’s in his 30s, he’s still up and coming, gaining new fans and followers all the time.

Today, he brings his new single “Sometimes” to the UPROXX Sessions stage. The song is both reflective and motivational, seeing him look back at how far he’s come to find the drive to go even further. “I had to make it out the dark, I always knew I would shine,” he croons in the chorus, summing up the spirit of his everlasting hustle. “Sometimes” appears on his newly released project Blanco 5, which features appearances from Fivio Foreign, Mozzy, Styles P, and more.

Watch Millyz perform “Sometimes” for UPROXX Sessions above.

UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too.

One of the best television programs from last year included a scene in which a man pooped in another man’s suitcase. When it’s described that way it doesn’t sound as nuanced as it is, but it is very nuanced.

In the finale of HBO’s The White Lotus which aired last summer, hotel manager Armand (Murray Bartlett) is about to get fired from his job due to needy hotel guest Shane (Jake Lacy). In an inspiring attempt at revenge, Armand sneaks into Shane’s room and poops in his suitcase. Unfortunately, this results in Shane stabbing Armand, who dies.

Just under a year after the show’s premiere on HBO, those involved in the poop scene talked about it in detail with Variety. Everyone involved, from writer Mike White to editor John Valerio said that creating the scene as we saw it was a complex process. Murray Bartlett said that the scene required a lot of shots, and was initially not supposed to include any wide shots of him pretending to poop. He found out about the wide shots making the final cut the day the finale aired last summer. Here’s what Bartlett said

We did a lot of coverage of that scene — there were shots on my face and shots of me squatting over the suitcase. We also did wide shots, but Mike [White] was like, ‘Don’t worry, we’re never going to use the wide shots.’ He called me the day that the last episode went to air and was like, ‘You’ve seen it right? I feel so bad.’ A lot of it is one long wide shot of me squatting over a suitcase doing my thing, which is the perfect shot to use obviously, but Mike was sort of stressed about it. It was very carefully choreographed. Shane comes in and I’m creeping out of the closet, and then he comes back into the hallway, so I have to go back in the closet. It’s this sort of physical comedy. We had a stunt guy who actually fell back into the bath. We wanted Armond’s last moment to be sort of ambiguous — there’s terror, obviously, in being stabbed in the chest, but also there’s some relief and perverse humor in it.

The White Lotus will probably get nominated for a bunch of Emmys and win a few of those, too. Originally intended as a limited series, the show was picked up for a second season, which will follow a new cast and the return of Jennifer Coolidge in a new location. No air date has been announced yet.

The 2022 BET Awards are coming up quickly, as the show goes down on June 26. Now, ten days before the event, we’re starting to get a clearer picture of what the broadcast is going to look like, as BET has announced who will be performing during this year’s awards.

Taking the stage will be Lizzo, Jack Harlow, Chloe, Chance The Rapper, Roddy Ricch, Latto, Giveon, Babyface, Doechii, Ella Mai, Fireboy DML, Joey Badass, Maverick City Music x Kirk Franklin, and Muni Long. Additionally, GoGo Morrow and OGI will perform on the BET Amplified Stage. On top of that, more artists are set to be announced at a later date.

The BET Awards were in the news earlier this month after the nominations were revealed and Lil Nas X, whose late-2021 album Montero was a hit, didn’t have a single one. In response, Nas tweeted, “Thank you bet awards. An outstanding zero nominations again. black excellence!” He later used his snub as a launching point for a conversation about “the bigger problem of homophobia in the black community.”

As for who was nominated, Doja Cat leads the pack with six total nods, followed closely by Drake and Ari Lennox, who each have four nominations.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Following a week of rumors, BTS member Jungkook is setting the record straight. Earlier this week, he took to South Korean live streaming app V-Live to clarify any rumors or misunderstandings, particularly those of a break-up.

Jungkook spoke in Korean during the stream, and while there were no English subtitles onscreen, a rep for Jungkook clarified that he had said that the group will not be disbanding or taking a hiatus, per Rolling Stone. Rather, the group will remain active as a band, even as the individual members work on their solo projects.

Jungkook also revealed that the group will shoot a video for their “Run BTS” cut from their Proof album.

Earlier this week, a rep for the band also confirmed that the band will not be breaking up, saying, “To be clear, they are not on hiatus but will take time to explore some solo projects at this time and remain active in various different formats.

The group’s label, Big Hit, also said in a statement, “BTS now starts a new chapter with new solo projects as well as group projects. Members will take this time to achieve personal growth through various new activities, and we expect it to further strengthen the foundation for the group’s long run as a team. Big Hit Music will actively support the artists.”

It’s hard to believe that Steve Lacy hasn’t released a new track in over three years, because he’s been firmly entrenched in mainstream consciousness ever since he put out Apollo XXI in 2019. Earlier this year, Lacy jumped on “Skin Tight,” off of Ravyn Lenae’s debut LP, Hypnos (which he co-produced much of). He also appeared on Foushee’s “Double Standard” and is slated to be on Brent Faiyaz’s new album. These are all examples of Lacy lending his master-touch to help elevate other artists’ games; It’s what made him stand out as an integral member of The Internet to begin with.

However, the mystique of his solo work is even more intriguing than his work as a right-hand player. It’s what garnered Apollo XXI a Grammy nomination and what helps build the anticipation for his sophomore album. Gemini Rights is the name of his upcoming drop, due out this summer, and now “Mercury” represents its lead single.

The song opens with a cowbell-inflected bossa nova groove, as Lacy softly sings in his velvet coo. His signature guitar riffs are at every turn, but he’s playing with complex rhythms. It builds up into an explosive conclusion and Lacy explained to Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 that a lot of the output from Gemini Rights will follow this pattern: “All of the singles, they all have a dual side, they all switch up, so like “Mercury’s” the first half and then the second half is something else, and then the singles do the same thing.”

Watch the video for “Mercury” above.

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