Travis Scott’s comeback continues. The Houston rapper recently performed his first public show at a club in Miami after soft-launching his return at both a pre-Oscars party and a Coachella afterparty earlier this year. Then, last month, he announced his impending return to the festival scene at Primavera Sound in Brazil this autumn. And now we know when he’ll show up on the awards show circuit again. The Billboard Music Awards have announced the upcoming 2022 show’s slate of performers, which includes Becky G, Burna Boy, Florence + The Machine, Latto, Megan Thee Stallion, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Silk Sonic, and yes, Travis Scott.
Travis is also nominated for one award: Spanish producer HVME’s “Goosebumps” remix is up for Top Dance/Electronic Song.
Sierra Nevada/Oskar Blues/Odell/Cigar City/istock/Uproxx
If you’re looking for a slightly-bitter-yet-malt-forward, crisp, easy-drinking beer for the spring and summer months instead of the usual overly bitter IPAs, maybe try grabbing a pale ale instead. Known for its medium alcohol strength and liberal use of hops and pale malts, pale ales make a whole lot of sense for warm weather drinking. And this being craft beer — an enormous ecosystem — there are a ton of pale ale options available.
Matt Simpson, head brewer at Tennessee Brew Works in Nashville, thinks the whole dang style deserves more respect.
“Fewer breweries brew pales every year,” he notes, adding that he finds much to love in the style. “They’re more malt-forward than an IPA, hopped lighter than IPA, but still hop-forward.”
To celebrate the pale ale, we tapped a panel of craft beer experts and asked them to list the most underrated pale ales on the scene. Keep scrolling to see some household names that don’t get the credit they deserve, along with a handful of under-the-radar beers (and one European pale ale) that these pros say deserve more acclaim.
Odell Drumroll
Odell
Mike Haakenstad, brewing operations manager at Sycamore Brewing in Charlotte, North Carolina
The type of pale ale I enjoy is one with a nice balance of piney and citrus notes. One that is balanced and not overly hopped or sweet and a solid ABV around 5%, so I can have a few. This choice for me is Drumroll by Odell Brewing Company. Super solid APA that drinks like a dream — go get some!
Invasion from Cigar City is a favorite. I really appreciate the balance of malt and perceived bitterness of those beers versus some American IPAs that can be sometimes unbalanced in favor of IBU or bitterness without enough body.
Oskar Blues Dale’s Pale Ale is a classic pale ale that maybe doesn’t get as much attention as it used to after the haze craze took over the country. More on the piney citrus side of the spectrum, Dale’s Pale Ale is widely available and always reliable.
Sometimes it’s nice to drink beer without overthinking it and Dale’s is perfect for that.
I think one of the most underrated pale ales out there is Freshies from our friends right here in New Jersey over at Tonewood Brewing. While the line (and palate fatigue) between varying alcohol degrees separating hazy pale ales, IPAs, double IPAs, and others all driving such a tropical forward, low bitterness delivery can blur at times, I think it is refreshing to find such drinkable and return-worthy hop-forward beers that lean ever so slightly more towards nostalgic roots.
Freshies delivers a clean, crisp, drinker that perfectly showcases a wider array of hop character than the homogenous fruit salad punch that is so prevalent. Pretty little waves of bright citrus, layered floral character, and a touch more refreshing bitterness make Freshies such a delight to drink several of. To me, Freshies can tend to be underrated simply because of its humble demeanor. It is not trying to be the biggest and baddest pale ale out there. It is simply trying to be a pale ale that you will happily load an entire cooler with for a day out on the water.
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Sierra Nevada
Douglas Constantiner, founder and CEO of Societe Brewing in San Diego
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. It’s one of the most famous beers in the world and that still doesn’t do it justice. The fact that it is the exemplary, defining Pale Ale and one of, if not the most widely available, it’s amazing. Crisp, hoppy, flavorful, and highly memorable. Yet, still underrated.
Taras Boulba from Brasserie de la Senne – often drank out of context, this beautiful dry, and hoppy beer with a smattering of yeasty esters is the best Pale Ale you’ll drink this year – and it’s made by a Belgian brewery.
Switchback Extra Pale Ale. This is a super-solid pale ale that wasn’t afraid to be different than the standard. Hazy before it was cool, plenty of malt character, spicy hops, and an entry yeast make this something special.
Carton Brewing’s The Hook never disappoints if I am in the mood for a pale ale. This very well balanced and a medium-bodied ale is assisted by some wheat in the malt bill. The hops are the right mix of classic Citra with the newer/cooler Vic Secret. Fruity, sweet, citrus hop character backed up by sweet cereal grain with hints of honey.
Kane Sneakbox. This is a new-world American pale ale that fits in more with the hazy IPAs than the old school Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Hopped exclusively with Citra, it’s lemony and bright, and the 5.4% ABV is approachable enough that you can have multiple glasses.
Mt. Nittany Pale Ale from Otto’s Pub and Brewery. This beer is amazing, a perfectly balanced pale ale. Crisp, hoppy, and refreshing. The brewmaster at Otto’s makes some of the best beers I have had but has no desire to enter awards competitions, but I have no doubt his beers would be winning awards if he did.
Cigar City Guayabera
Cigar City
Marshall Hendrickson, co-founder and head of operations at Veza Sur Brewing in Miami
Cigar City – Guayabera Citra Pale Ale. I feel like Pale Ales have lost a bit of popularity in recent years, but Guayabera has bucked the trend. It’s a great beer, well balanced with a citrusy hop flavor – perfect if you want a bit of hops without the full strength of an IPA.
Half Acre Daisy Cutter is my pick for the most underrated pale ale. It has great balance and a bone-dry finish that keeps you sipping. It seems that any beer that is readily available these days like Daisy Cutter is underrated. If you haven’t had it before, the time is right to try it.
Outlandish conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is not a fan of the outlandish conspiracy theory known as QAnon. The man, who’s currently being sued by the Sandy Hook families for essentially saying their children’s mass shooting death never happened because the kids didn’t exist, apparently draws the line at the notion that Donald Trump is fighting a secret shadow war against pedophiles. Jones flew off the handle during a recent episode of his InfoWars podcast after receiving a call from a QAnon follower.
“Q is such a horrible thing that I hate even talking about it,” Jones ranted. “It was all a delusion, so the Democrats could steal the election.”
Alex Jones melts down at a caller for asking about QAnon.
“We lost the country because of Q! I have to put up with the Q people all over the place! And I’m tired of it!” pic.twitter.com/le6WSrm2yp
“Do you understand that we lost the country because of Q?” Jones shouted. “And I have to put up with the Q people all over the place! And I’m tired of it!”
“So, I’m not mad at you, but you hit a button!” he exclaimed. “And the damn Q people were the ones that manipulated some people to go into the damn Capitol and work with the feds. Q is the worst people on Earth! Q is the new world order! Q is a psyop to lead us around by our noses!”
Jones’ claim that Q “manipulated some people” to “work with the feds” is an interesting statement considering the InfoWars host is reportedly looking to work with the January 6 commission and, theoretically, could rat out Trump. The same Trump who Jones later credited in his rant with creating the QAnon movement before it was taken over by the CIA. Remember, you always gotta work the CIA in there, or else why even put on your tinfoil hat?
Rihanna looks like she could pop any day now — mazeltov! — and since Sunday was Mother’s Day, one of the music industry’s best-known moms gave the expecting Rihanna some parenting advice. Caught by TMZ leaving New York restaurant Carbone with Offset and Kulture, Cardi B offered some words of wisdom for her imminent peer in both motherhood and music.
Asked whether she had any advice for motherhood for Rihanna, she counseled, “It comes so naturally. It really comes naturally. So many people give you advice. Once [the baby is] in there, that mother instinct comes out.” Unfortunately, the mom and the mom-to-be haven’t gotten the chance to hang out lately, but perhaps a play date or two with Cardi’s youngest is possible once Rihanna and ASAP Rocky’s baby pops out.
Meanwhile, Cardi’s recent social media venting sessions about the drawbacks of fame prompted TMZ’s photographer to hope Cardi wouldn’t give up on music. However, it looks like the “Up” rapper has no plans to retire anytime soon. “I would never leave music,” she asserted. “No, I was talking about the internet. Girl, I would never leave music, that’s my bread and butter. Who gonna stop eating bread and butter?” That’s something she has in common with Rihanna as well.
You can watch the video on TMZ.
Cardi B is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Four of the six major NBA awards have already been officially handed out, with Scottie Barnes winning Rookie of the Year, Ja Morant winning Most Improved Player, Tyler Herro winning Sixth Man of the Year, and Marcus Smart earning Defensive Player of the Year, leaving just MVP and Coach of the Year to go.
While those will not be officially announced until later this month, Monday brought word of the winners of both of those awards. Early in the morning, word broke that Nikola Jokic was taking home back-to-back MVP awards, edging out Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo, while in the afternoon Shams Charania of The Athletic reported Suns coach Monty Williams would be named Coach of the Year.
Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams has won the 2021-22 NBA Coach of the Year award, sources tell @TheAthletic@Stadium. Williams led the franchise to an NBA-best 64-18 record this season.
Williams had already earned Coach of the Year honors from his fellow coaches and will now add the league’s award, as voted on by the media, to his mantle. The Suns had the best record in the NBA this season, a year after winning the Western Conference and reaching the NBA Finals. Williams beat out Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra and Memphis’ Taylor Jenkins for the honor.
Songs don’t debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart all that often: Of the 1,137 songs that have ever topped the chart in its history, just 61 of them debuted on top. It’s become a more common feat recently, though, as 33 of those No. 1 debuts arrived in 2018 or later. These totals all count the latest one from today, as Future, Drake, and Tems’ “Wait For U” is now the 61st song to debut at No. 1.
“Wait For U” is the 1,137th No. 1 song in the #Hot100‘s 63-year history, and the 61st to enter on top.
This was big for Drake, as it made him the first rapper with ten No. 1 singles. It was also a major moment for Future, as it made him just the fifth artist to ever have a song debut at No. 1 on the Hot 100 and an album (I Never Liked You) premiere on top of the Billboard 200 in the same week.
This is a historic moment for Tems, too: The Nigerian singer is now officially the first artist from Africa to have a song debut at No. 1 on the Hot 100. She’s also only the second Nigerian artist to go No. 1 at all; Wizkid did it first when he was featured on Drake’s No. 1 hit “One Dance” in 2016.
This is also Tems’ second top-10 single, as her and Wizkid’s “Essence” peaked at No. 9 in 2021.
Obi-Wan Kenobi is already in a dire position at the start of his new Disney+ series, and now, he’s up against an even more unstoppable villain than Darth Vader: The Emmys. According to a new report, Obi-Wan Kenobi will not be eligible for the 2022 Primetime Emmy Awards thanks to the series premiering just shy of the cutoff date for eligible shows. Obi-Wan premieres on May 27 and won’t conclude until late June, which puts it afoul of the guidelines for series with “hanging episodes.”
Of course, there is a way for Obi-Wan to maneuver into this year’s nominations, but it would require the highly secretive Lucasfilm to make the show’s final episodes privately available to Academy members, and that’s not happening. Spoilers would be all over the internet in hours.
The “Obi-Wan” finale is scheduled to drop on June 22, after the start of nomination voting. So unless Disney decides to release the final two episodes on June 15 and (and far less likely) make the episodes available to the over 20,000 TV Academy members only ahead of its Disney+ debut, the show will have to sit this year out.
At the end of the day, missing the cutoff doesn’t mean that Obi-Wan is out of luck when it comes to Emmy nominations. It just means the new Star Wars series will have to wait until 2023 to be fully eligible. However, it could have at least one or two other Star Wars series to contend with in that window, as The Mandalorian Season 3 and Andor are both expected to drop within the year.
Good news, comic book (and Vince Staples) fans: This month, after four months of delays, Vince’s Z2 comic book, Limbo Beach, finally arrives. The book, which was announced in June 2021, will finally be arriving in “mid-May,” according to an update sent by Z2 Comics last month, and to celebrate, Vince has announced the Limbo Beach Carnival in his hometown, Long Beach, taking place on Thursday, May 12 at El Dorado Park. Vince’s dedication to The Beach is well-known thanks to his musical shout-outs and a wealth of local events, such as the Limbo Beach Carnival, and his appearance at the Activate Uptown block party in 2016.
IF YOU IN THE CITY IM THROWING A CARNIVAL @ EL DORADO PARK ITS FREE BRING THE WHOLE FAMILY. THIS THURSDAY. pic.twitter.com/zLkIL5WfQp
Staples is fresh off the release of his newest album, Ramona Park Broke My Heart, named for the neighborhood in which he grew up in Long Beach. The project was his most commercially-appealing effort yet, led by the Mustard-produced single “Magic” and featuring introspective but enticing cuts such as “Rose Street” and “When Sparks Fly.” He recently performed the album in its entirety as part of a livestreaming special, Ramona Park Broke My Heart: The Musical on Moment House.
Click the link below to reserve your copy and cop some limited edition merch! See you there!https://t.co/jEI1nsd6eJ
And as far as Limbo Beach goes, you can find out more on Z2 Comics’ website. It’s written by Vince Staples, Bryan Edward Hill, and Chris Robinson, illustrated by Buster Moody, and available in standard softcover and hardcover, deluxe, and super deluxe editions with plenty of goodies for hardcore fans.
As the 2022 WNBA season got started this weekend, there was once again ample discussion about the roster crunch teams face and the number of quality players that find themselves getting cut at the end of training camps. This year saw some eyebrow raising cuts, like Te’a Cooper from the Sparks and Layshia Clarendon and Crystal Dangerfield from the Lynx, and players and fans alike pointed to there being only 144 roster spots in the 12-team league as the biggest problem for the WNBA right now.
While expanded rosters would help, the way to open more spots for players would be expansion, which the league understands and commissioner Cathy Engelbert told the Seattle Times over the weekend that the goal is to add “two expansion teams in the next few years,” bringing the league to 14 teams.
“We’re transforming the economics of the league,” Engelbert said. “We want to bring new owners into the league longer term. We need to find the right time to do that. We’re doing a lot of data analysis. … We’ll continue to do that analysis and hopefully this summer at some point we’ll be able to say more. But we want to be thoughtful about it.”
“We don’t want to jeopardize the momentum we have, but we understand the issue about roster sizes,” she said. “But when you’re a country the size and scale of ours and you’re only in 12 cities, growing the league is a way to do that as well. Then you open up roster spots. I don’t think it’s about rosters per team. It’s about more opportunities to play for more players to play.”
Expansion is something WNBA fans and players have been wanting for years, and the league pulling in $75 million in investments from various companies and improved national TV deals shows that positive momentum the WNBA has right now. The biggest stumbling block towards expansion isn’t a lack of interest from the outside, but the internal battle among league owners that came to light this offseason.
The league’s $500,000 fine of Liberty owner Joe Tsai for booking charter flights for the team over the second half of last season showed the fracture at the ownership level, where new owners like Tsai, Mark Davis, and Marc Lore come in as owners of large men’s teams and want to provide that level of investment into facilities, staffing, and travel are butting heads with longtime WNBA ownership groups that don’t have that same level of cash flow. For now, the old ownership groups have the majority, but every expansion team figures to close that gap as one would expect owners of new teams to be in that Tsai/Davis/Lore realm.
Adding two teams rather than a larger expansion would be a middle ground of bringing more money into the league while also not guaranteeing that massive changes will come immediately to how teams are expected to spend on their teams — which is why expanded roster sizes or a developmental league funded by teams is likely not something that they could get the Board of Governors on board for right now.
As for where the two new teams will play, that likewise remains to be seen, but there are plenty of potential investors that have made clear they want a WNBA franchise in their city, from old homes of early WNBA franchises like Houston to new potential homes like Toronto (where Drake wants in if the league heads north of the border).
This is big for Drake, too, as it makes him the first rapper with ten No. 1 songs and one of just a few artists to ever notch that many. He, Janet Jackson, and Stevie Wonder each have ten, Whitney Houston has 11, Madonna and The Supremes have 12, Michael Jackson has 13, Rihanna has 14, Mariah Carey has 19, and The Beatles have 20.
Meanwhile, this latest entry extends a number of records Drake already held: He now has 262 total Hot 100 entries, 147 top-40 entries, 55 top-10 entries, and 40 top-ten debuts, all of which are the most of all time.
Artists with the most No. 1 songs on the #Hot100 of all time:
.@Drake extends the following #Hot100 records this week:
Most Top 10 Entries: Extends his record to 55 Most Top 40 Entries: Extends his record to 147 Most Total Entries: Extends his record to 262 Most Top 10 Debuts: Extends his record to 40
It’s not just Drake making history, though, as Future is now just the fifth artist in history to have a song debut at No. 1 on the Hot 100 and an album premiere on top of the Billboard 200 in the same week.
.@1future is the fifth artist in history to debut at No. 1 on the #Hot100 and #Billboard200 simultaneously in the same week.
Future also has a few other songs in the top ten: “Puffin On Zootiez” is No. 4, “712PM” is No. 8, and “I’m Dat N****” is No. 10. All songs from the standard edition of I Never Liked You are actually on the Hot 100 this week, bringing Future’s career total to 149 songs to ever appear on the chart. That moves him to fifth all time, behind Taylor Swift (16), Lil Wayne (180), Glee (262), and Drake (262).
All 16 songs from the standard edition of @1future‘s “I Never Liked You’ debut on this week’s #Hot100, bringing his career total to 149 entries overall.
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