Kendrick Lamar has finally delivered a due date for his new album. Titled Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, Lamar posted the official album announcement via his oklama.com website, but he let the world know in extremely eccentric (and very Kendrick Lamar) fashion that shows he’s been listening to all of the Twitter stans demanding an album update for months.
Lamar quote retweeted a two-month-old tweet saying, “Kendrick Lamar is officially retired,” with just the link to his website.
On the website’s landing page, there are two old-school Microsoft Windows folder icons. The first one labeled “nuthoughts” takes you to his statement from last August where he indicated that his next album would be “my final TDE album.” But the new folder, marked by an all black Windows folder takes you to a statement printed on official pgLang letterhead (the media company/label founded by Lamar and Dave Free in 2020) and it reads simply:
“Los Angeles, CA (April 18, 2022) – the following statement was released today by oklama through his company pgLang at 11:00am PT in Los Angeles, CA:
Album: “Mr Morale & The Big Steppers”
Release date: 5/13/2022
All factual information for this release will come directly from this source only.”
So there it is. Kendrick Lamar has finally announced Mr Morale & The Big Steppers. Let the countdown to May 13th begin.
While discussing her new memoir “Finding Me” with People magazine, Viola Davis hinted at one of the book’s main themes: the power of forgiveness.
Forgiveness is loosely defined as releasing resentment toward those who have harmed us. Most of us are at least somewhat familiar with how healing it can be. But what does forgiveness actually look like? What does it feel like? What do we do once we have forgiven?
During the interview, Davis shared a lot about her childhood: growing up in poverty, enduring bullying and even having an abusive parent.
Davis witnessed her father, Dan, regularly beat her mother Mae Alice during their 48 years of marriage.
However, before dying of pancreatic cancer in 2006, something changed within him. “My mom said he apologized to her every single day. Every single day, he rubbed her feet.”
And in that act of absolution between her parents, Davis realized that “forgiveness is not pretty … life is not a Thursday-night lineup on ABC. It is messy.”
Indeed, forgiveness does not equate to a fairytale ending. It doesn’t guarantee an end to pain. And it rarely happens effortlessly, or even quickly. It takes work, which can be seen as further unfairness.
Accepting the messiness allowed Davis to accept both realities. “He did hurt me then, but love and forgiveness can operate on the same plane as anger.”
Davis chose to see her father not as a villain, but as a human, flawed and imperfect but also willing and loving. She chose to embrace it all with empathy.
“My dad loved me. I saw it. I felt it. I received it, and I took it,” Davis told People. “For me, that’s a much better gift and less of a burden than going through my entire life carrying that big, heavy weight of who he used to be and what he used to be and what he used to do.
Forgiveness is just as much about what we gain as what we give up. By shedding our identity as victim, life can once again be a series of choices. And in the process, we remember that now—in the present moment—we are free to make our own decisions. For those suffering from childhood trauma and seeking to break toxic generational patterns, this can be an invaluable gift.
“It’s given me an extraordinary sense of compassion. It’s reconciling that young girl in me and healing from the past—and finding home.”
Davis, now happily married for nearly 20 years, has learned to cherish every part of her journey.
“I count it all as joy. I do. All of those things happened to me, but I own it. And it’s a part of who I am.”
Power and strength are attributes the award-winning actress is often associated with in her work, but after hearing her life story, it sounds like these qualities were also learned and developed through daunting challenges.
It takes courage to forgive, but as Davis exemplifies, it can fortify our spirit in profound ways. We might not all go on to star on the stage and screen, but perhaps we can all stand to live our own lives a bit more untethered.
Viral videos come and go. The best ones warm your heart and leave you smiling and feeling like your faith in humanity is restored. That’s what many people felt as they watched the video of a weightlifter for Bruce High School in Mississippi, whose teammates and competitors helped remove her hair beads so she could qualify to lift. The powerlifting competition was a state championship, and after the lifter finished her first lift squat, a judge informed her coach them that she could not compete in the next lift with beads in her hair, according to Holly Preston Wilkes, who shared the story to her Facebook page.
The action of the girls watching this unfold is heartwarming. These fellow weightlifters didn’t hesitate to jump in and help the soon-to-be disqualified student when they saw her begin to take her beads out of her hair. Eventually there were so many hands in her head that she had to stop helping, and in the end all of the beads were out before she took the platform for her next lift. When reading the viral post, which now has more than 34,000 shares, it appears the weightlifter was singled out due to a rule about “jewelry etc.” but beads are not jewelry. Beads actually serve a functional purpose outside of some beauty aesthetic.
It’s no secret that the majority of Black people have a different hair texture than other ethnicities, and even within the Black community hair texture can vary from person to person. Hair textures within the same family can also differ, just like any other feature, and for the majority of Black people, our hair defies gravity. Little Black girls grew up wearing ballies, barrettes and beads on the ends of their hair, and others misunderstood their use, assuming they served one purpose, to be pretty. In fact, the use of these items helps weigh the hair down so it doesn’t stick up, which can be seen as unkempt by societal standards (thankfully this is quickly changing with more people embracing their natural hair).
This is why the video that was viewed as a sweet moment serves as a troubling reminder to some Black people. Our hair is somehow inappropriate, even when it’s neatly placed in a protective hairstyle as this weightlifter’s hair was styled. As the video plays, the high schooler’s braids begin to slowly raise as the beads are removed from the ends. There’s no clip showing the end result, but it’s obvious that the beads are there for more than decorative purposes. If there was concern about the hair possibly being in the eyes of the competing weightlifter, then a borrowed headband or ponytail holder would have sufficed. The idea that she was singled out due to a questionable rule that would deem beads in the hair as jewelry simply prove why the CROWN Act is needed.
Representation of different cultures is needed when sweeping rules are made for sports, workplaces and other areas, because no small group of people can know what is culturally significant of all cultures. We can’t grow unless we ask questions and listen to people that may look different than us. This is especially true when we are writing laws and rules that are to be applied generally without cultural considerations that may not align with what was written. The passing of the CROWN Act will help eliminate rules that may be unintentionally harmful to Black people, who are simply attempting to care for their hair in a way that is not only pleasing to their own eye, but protected from damage.
After releasing and re-releasing quite a few albums the past couple of years, Taylor Swift is laying low so far this year. However, last month, NYU announced that they would be awarding the pop star an honorary doctorate of fine arts and that she will be speaking at commencement at Yankee Stadium on May 18. Now, she’s being championed by the science community who are naming a newly discovered species of millipede after her.
According to Phys.org, 16 new species of millipede were found in the Appalachian Mountains. Thanks to the “All Too Well” singer, one species goes by Nannaria swiftae. Virginia Tech scientists announced the species in a paper, in which one author named Derek Hennen wrote: “Her music helped me get through the highs and lows of graduate school, so naming a new millipede species after her is my way of saying thanks.”
This new millipede species is Nannaria swiftae: I named it after @taylorswift13! I’m a big fan of her music, so I wanted to show my appreciation by naming this new species from Tennessee after her. A high honor! pic.twitter.com/fXml3xX5Vs
Though Swift has been laying low, she recently shared some kind words in support of her collaborator Phoebe Bridgers in a recent interview. “I think that the specificity of Phoebe’s lyrics and the vulnerability she expresses in her voice when she delivers them is what makes her music so deeply impactful and moving for me as a fan,” she said. “You feel like she’s reliving a precise memory or delivering a secret message to someone and you get the privilege to read it or hear about it.”
The partnership between Rocket League and NASCAR that began in 2021 was a perfect crossover opportunity between brand and game. Every car in NASCAR is designed to reach the highest speeds possible as they race one another, so why not take some of these same cars and give them rocket boosters so they can play soccer.
Now, the two sides are continuing this partnership into 2022 with Rocket League introducing a NASCAR themed Fan Pass. The NASCAR Fan Pass will give players cars, items, and more from some of their favorite NASCAR drivers, cars, and teams. Starting April 20, fans will be able to purchase the Fan Pass and gain access to the NASCAR Next Gen Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, and Toyota Camry. Alongside this they will also be able to choose from nine different decals including:
Front Row Motorsports #34 (NASCAR Next Gen Ford Mustang Decal)
RFK Racing #17 (NASCAR Next Gen Ford Mustang Decal)
Stewart-Haas Racing #4 (NASCAR Next Gen Ford Mustang Decal)
Team Penske #12 (NASCAR Next Gen Ford Mustang Decal)
Hendrick Motorsports #5 (NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro Decal)
Spire Motorsports #7 (NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro Decal)
Trackhouse Racing #1 (NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro Decal)
Richard Childress Racing #8 (NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro Decal)
Joe Gibbs Racing #19 (NASCAR Next Gen Toyota Camry Decal)
Rocket League/NASCAR
More information can be found in a Rocket Leagueblog post explaining the fan pass and how it works.
The 2022 NASCAR Fan Pass will be available for 1100 Credits from April 20 through April 26. Throughout the year more NASCAR-themed items will be added automatically to players’ inventories thanks to the pass. Content drops can be expected around upcoming races and this first one will coincide with the GEICO 500 Race at Talladega.
This Easter’s the first one in years where gathering has really been possible, but that didn’t discourage or distract any of the usual far-right suspects from tweeting unfortunate messages. Lauren Boebert received a Bible-school lesson while Rudy Giuliani melted down. Ex-President Trump nodded towards the “radical left maniacs” in his own way, but what of Don Jr? You know he had one locked and loaded.
Don Jr., he of the glassy-eyed rants that inspires “Motel 6” jokes and the amped-up Fox News sightings and who (not too terribly long ago) appeared to snag a right-wing meme that pulled the “come and take it” card with a trio of gun and ammo-brandishing human-bunny rabbits.
It was, to be certain, a very bizarre way to mark the religious holiday that often goes the way of Easter egg hunts and too much potato salad. These bunnies look even less enjoyable to hang with than a box of Peeps, and of course, people couldn’t resist reacting. Not only did Don Jr. share this violent-bunny meme during a weekend with multiple mass shootings, but naturally, people couldn’t resist making some jokes about furries and and commenting upon the WTF nature of it all.
Just what a family friendly holiday about forgiving people needs: lethal weapons to kill the people you’re too crazy to forgive for telling you to lay off the crack. https://t.co/FRJ6m4BFdW
The Cannes Film Festival has a stacked lineup this year, with new movies from David Cronenberg, James Gray, Claire Denis, Park Chan-wook, Kelly Reichardt, and Hirokazu Kore-eda. One anticipated title that will not premiere at the festival, however, is Blonde, the Ana de Armas-starring Marilyn Monroe biopic from The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Killing Them Softly director Andrew Dominik. Netflix won’t debut any of its films at the festival’s 75th edition, including Blonde.
Dominik didn’t directly discuss the Cannes omission during a recent interview with Collider (he hopes it premieres at Venice instead), but he did compare his “NC-17 movie about Marilyn Monroe” to two of the greatest movies ever. “Blonde is a movie for all the unloved children of the world. It’s like Citizen Kane and Raging Bull had a baby daughter,” he said, adding, “It uses all the imagery that you have seen of Marilyn Monroe, the films, photographs of her life. But it changes the meaning of all those things in accordance with her internal drama. So it’s sort of a movie about the unconscious.”
Dominik continued:
“And it’s a tragedy. It’s sort of like an unwanted child who becomes the most wanted woman in the world and has to deal with all of the desire that is directed at her, and how confusing that is. It’s kind of a nightmare. It’s about being in a car with no brakes. It’s just going faster and faster and faster.”
It’s only fair that de Armas stars in a movie that goes “faster and faster and faster” after her last film was about snails.
Blonde is expected to hit Netflix later this year.
Keeping up with new music can be exhausting, even impossible. From the weekly album releases to standalone singles dropping on a daily basis, the amount of music is so vast it’s easy for something to slip through the cracks. Even following along with the Uproxx recommendations on a daily basis can be a lot to ask, so every Monday we’re offering up this rundown of the best new music this week.
This week saw Lizzo introduce a “song of the summer” contender and Cardi B make her return with a new feature. Yeah, it was a great week for new music. Check out the highlights below.
Lizzo is coming off a huge weekend that saw her serve as host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Ahead of that, she made sure she had a new song to perform by dropping “About Damn Time,” a snippet of which she played on The Late Late Show last month. The song is an absolute banger that sees Lizzo riding the wave of the recent disco revival on one of her catchiest and funkiest singles yet.
Phoebe Bridgers — “Sidelines”
Phoebe Bridgers is officially at the level of fame and acclaim that news of a new single crashes her website. That happened last week with “Sidelines,” which she dropped on Friday. The song is an introspective tune in which she addresses her fears and how her nature has changed over the years.
Kay Flock — “Shake It” Feat. Cardi B, Dougie B, and Bory3000
Cardi B’s corner of the internet has been a quiet place recently after deactivating her social media pages earlier this month. She made her return to the spotlight in a big way a few days ago, though, by getting back online, revealing her new baby boy’s name, and making a featured appearance on a new song; She hopped on Kay Flock’s “Shake It,” offering a few lines on the raw, two-minute drill track.
Trina — “Clap” Feat. Latto
Trina, long an ally to rising female rappers, showed an example of that spirit last week by linking up with Latto on “Clap.” Uproxx’s Aaron Williams notes of the track, “Trina reunites with Latto for a frenzied strip club anthem that finds the two rappers playing femme fatale, stressing both their beauty and their danger.”
Kurt Vile — “Flyin (Like A Fast Train)”
Vile recently told Uproxx of his new album Watch My Moves, “Basically, I just want it to be as honest as possible. I want the songs to creep up to me. In the older days, I used to think too much. ‘Oh, why am I not writing? Am I going to write a good song?’ None of that matters, because now I like when I’m not writing. I like to be present in whatever I’m doing and then the music comes through inspiration. If you just go about your day, inspiration’s going to strike. I’m not too worried about anything really. I feel like I’ve proved a lot on this album, to be honest. But at the same time, I have nothing to prove.”
Lil Durk — “What Happened To Virgil” Feat. Gunna
Virgil Abloh, an iconic designer whose influence was felt in the hip-hop world (among many other realms), died in late 2021. That was almost half a year ago and the tributes are still pouring in. The latest was last week’s Lil Durk and Gunna collaboration “What Happened To Virgil.” Uproxx’s Aaron Williams notes the song’s Lyrical Lemonade video (which was made in the production company’s “colorful, surreal, and whimsical” aesthetic) is “a far cry from Durk and Gunna’s grittier visuals. That “turns out to actually be a perfect tribute to Abloh’s high-low aesthetic, which saw him bringing streetwear virtues to high-fashion venues such as Louis Vuitton, where he was the artistic director until his recent passing.”
Jamie xx — “Let’s Do It Again”
While it’s been a minute since a new album from The xx, the group’s members have kept busy with their own solo endeavors. That includes Jamie xx, who has dropped a single here and there. He returned with another last week: “Let’s Do It Again,” a fun, summery, club-ready dance tune.
Interpol — “Something Changed”
Interpol went ahead and announced a new album, The Other Side Of Make-Believe, earlier this month and have so far shared a couple of singles. Last week brought “Something Changed,” a dramatic, mid-tempo tune that slots nicely into the band’s oeuvre.
Gucci Mane — “Serial Killers”
Gucci Mane dropped a whopping three projects last year — Ice Daddy, So Icy Boyz, and So Icy Christmas — and he hasn’t really slowed down here in 2022. Just last week, he delivered “Serial Killers,” in which he uses haunting production to share a message for posers claiming to live the lifestyle he actually has.
Edgar Winter, Taylor Hawkins, and Doug Rappoport — “Guess I’ll Go Away”
Aside from the outpouring of kind words about Taylor Hawkins following the late Foo Fighters drummer’s recent death, another sign of how beloved he was is the many collaborations he was involved in outside of his main band. One of those, which ended up being his first posthumous song, was released last week: Edgar Winter shared For Johnny, a tribute album for his late brother Johnny Winter, and on it, Hawkins sings “Guess I’ll Go Away,” showing that while Dave Grohl is the Foo Fighters’ captain, the band had more than one capable leading man.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Amber Heard’s traumatizing trial against Johnny Depp has been going on for some time, and it just hit another bump in the road after Heard’s close friend and journalist Eve Barlow (who is known for her controversial “Eve Fartlow” tweets) was allegedly tweeting and texting in the front row of the courtroom which is historically a very controversial move…and also just a generally bad idea.
According to Page Six, Barlow was sitting with Heard’s legal team and attempted to bring up social media posts regarding the case, and was even tweeting and texting while inside the courtroom. While the laws surrounding tweeting and texting in court are iffy (they vary from state to state) it was allegedly against a court order, according to Judge Penney S. Azcarate.
A source from inside the court told Page Six that Barlow was sitting with Heard’s legal team, “live-tweeting, texting and posting information” before Depp’s lawyers had her barred from the court.
“She was tweeting live from my courtroom … and I know the deputies took her out because she was texting. That’s against the court order. Ms. Barlow is not coming back into the courtroom during this trial,” Azcaratate said.
Heard and Depp have been in an ugly legal battle for several years, though this specific trail was regarding Heard’s op-ed about domestic abuse for The Washington Post. The Pirates Of The Caribbean actor sued for defamation of character. The two were in a relationship from 2015 to 2017, and Depp claims Heard made up allegations against him, while Heard countersued for 100 million.
Depp was famously fired from his role in the Harry Potter prequels after outrage among fans. Surprisingly enough that’s only one of the numerous scandals and drama that has been surrounding the franchise. Maybe it’s time to take a quick break from the Wizarding World, and the real world for that matter!
Rosalía has been taking over the world ever since releasing her groundbreaking album Motomami last month. With salacious videos, fiery collaborations, and praise from fellow stars like Lorde and Cardi B, the album was one of the biggest releases of the year so far. Now, she’s going to be heading out on a world tour this summer and fall.
The “Chicken Teriyaki” singer will be starting the run in Almería, Spain on July 6 and will end in Paris, France at the Accor Arena. Check out the dates below.
07/06 – Almería, Spain @ Recinto Ferial de Almeria
07/09 – Sevilla, Spain @ Estadio La Cartuja
07/12 – Granada, Spain @ Plaza de Toros
07/14 – Malaga, Spain @ Marenostrum
07/16 – Valencia, Spain @ Auditorio Marina Sur
07/19 – Madrid, Spain @ WiZink Center
07/20 – Madrid, Spain @ WiZink Center
07/23 – Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Sant Jordi
07/24 – Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Sant Jordi
07/27 – Bilbao, Spain @ Bilbao Exhibition Centre BEC
07/29 – La Coruña, Spain @ The Coliseo
08/01 – Palma, Spain @ Son Fusteret
08/14 – Mexico City, Mexico @ Auditorio Nacional
08/17 – Guadalajara, Mexico @ Auditorio Telemex
08/19 – Monterrey, Mexico @ Auditorio CitiBanamex
08/22 – Sao Paulo, Brazil @ Tom Brasil
08/25 – Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Arena Movistar
08/28 – Santiago, Chile @ Movistar Arena
08/31 – Bogota, Colombia @ Movistar Arena
09/03 – La Romana, Dominican Republic @ Altos De Chavon Amphitheater
09/09 – San Juan, Puerto Rico @ The Coliseo
09/15 – Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall at Fenway
09/18 – New York, New York @ Radio City Music Hall
09/19 – New York, New York @ Radio City Music Hall
09/23 – Toronto, Canada @ Budweiser Stage
09/26 – Washington, D.C. @ The Anthem
09/28 – Chicago, Illinois @ Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom
10/02 – San Diego, California @ Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre
10/04 – San Francisco, California @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
10/07 – Inglewood, California @ YouTube Theater
10/08 – Inglewood, California @ YouTube Theater
10/12 – Houston, Texas @ 713 Music Hall
10/14 – Irving, Texas @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
10/17 – Atlanta, Georgia @ Coca-Cola Roxy
10/22 – Miami, FL @ iii Points Festival
11/25 – Porto, Portugal @ Pavilhão Rosa Mota
11/26 – Lisbon, Portugal @ Campo Pequeno
12/01 – Milan, Italy @ Mediolanum Forum
12/04 – Berlin, Germany @ Velodrom
12/07 – Dusseldorf, Germany @ Mitsubishi Electric Hall
12/10 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ AFAS Live
12/12 – Brussels, Belgium @ Forest National
12/15 – London, United Kingdom @ The O2
12/18 – Paris, France @ Accor Arena
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
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