Category: News

The music world woke up to horrifying news about Travis Scott’s 2021 Astroworld Festival. During the rapper’s solo set on Friday, which closed out the first night of the two-day showcase, chaos broke out within the crowd. A number of concertgoers were trampled and soon found it hard to breathe due to the suffocating atmosphere. At the end of the night, it was revealed that eight people died and hundreds of people were injured as a result of the incident. A number of attendees took to social media to share their thoughts. And now Travis Scott himself has issued a statement on the matter.

“I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night,” he wrote on Twitter “My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival. Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life.” He added, “I am committed to working together with the Houston community to heal and support the families in need. Thank you to Houston PD, Fire Department and NRG Park for their immediate response and support. Love You All.”

Fire Chief Samuel Peña spoke to reporters late Friday night and went into detail about what happened. “The crowd began to compress towards the front of the stage, and that caused some panic, and it started causing some injuries,” he said. “People began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic.” He said that at 9:38 PM local time, the incident was then listed as a “mass causality event” and that medical units on hand were “quickly overwhelmed” by the “scores of people” that were treated for injuries.

In total, 17 people were transported to local hospitals, with 11 being treated for cardiac arrest, and more than 300 people were treated on-site at the festival.

Eternals sure sounds like it should have been a critical slam dunk: an against-the-grain Marvel entry from a director who recently won a slew of Oscars. It even has images filmed not in a giant Atlanta warehouse but in the great outdoors, which blew the mind of Kevin Feige, to the amusement of many. Instead, the epic, from Nomadland’s Chloe Zhao, has received the worst reviews in MCU history. And now, as per The Hollywood Reporter, even audiences are giving it the franchise’s lowest marks. But of course, neither its critical nor commercial reception is really all that bad.

According to THR, audiences awarded Eternals with a B average. No, that’s not that bad. A lot of movies would love to get a B from audiences. But it’s still not a great sign that moviegoers are actually enjoying the second-longest MCU title, after Avengers: Endgame, which was longer than most Martin Scorsese movies. Indeed, it’s the lowest such rating since the original Thor, which “only” received a B+ back in 2011.

None of this seems to be impacting the box office, at least not yet. Eternals grossed an epic $30.7 million in its first official day of release, $9.5 million of that coming from Thursday previews. That’s close to pre-pandemic levels. But there’s still word-of-mouth, and if audiences feel the same way as critics do about the film — that it’s, you know, still fine — then it’ll probably only gross what’s still considered a ton of money.

(Via THR)

It’s well-known in LA circles that Terrence “Punch” Henderson has plenty of artistic and musical talent of his own, even though he’s spent the last several years as one of the architects behind the Top Dawg Entertainment empire. Now, Punch is readying another collective, and the trailer for what they’re about to do just dropped yesterday. A Room Full Of Mirrors will feature Punch alongside other artists like Nick Grant, DayLyt, Earlee Riser, Billymarie, Lyric Michelle, Ichiban Don, Hari and Jrias Law. They released “Mirrors” back in February and “RawR” in April to preview their first EP together, and now that project is only a few days away.

To further whet fans’ appetites, last night they dropped a trailer that revealed the EP title and gave a taste of what’s to come. Money Bags is teased in the minute-long clip (above) as a visual EP, with some clear inspirations from Quentin Tarantino and Reservoir Dogs. The film was directed by Lyric Michelle, and as far as the music, most of the project was produced by Hari and “and constructed from a narrative and detail standpoint by Punch himself.” Punch has overseen every release for TDE, so needless to say he knows how to roll an album out. Check out the preview for Money Bags above, dropping in just a few days on November 17.

There is no bottom for Donald Trump. For his entire life, he’s shown he’ll say or do to get ahead, or simply to create chaos for chaos’s sake. The former president-turned-failed blogger (and maybe future failed social media honcho) was suspiciously quiet after one of his many enemies, SNL impersonator Alec Baldwin, was involved in a tragic shooting on the set of Rust, which resulted in the accidental killing of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. But that restraint didn’t last too long.

According to The Wrap, Trump appeared on the right-leaning podcast The Chris Stigall Show, where he ran his mouth about things he doesn’t know about. Inevitably the Rust shooting came up.

“In my opinion, he had something to do with it,” Trump said. “But if nothing else, how do you take a gun, whether it’s loaded or not loaded, how do you take a gun, point it at somebody that’s not even in the movie, and just point it at this person and pull the trigger, and now she’s dead.”

Trump then intimated that Baldwin fired a live round on purpose, calling him a “sick guy.”

“Even if it was loaded, and, you know, that’s a weird thing, maybe he loaded it,” Trump told Stigall. “If they handed me a gun, I would never point it at somebody and shoot it.”

He added that Baldwin, per his judgment, is “a troubled guy. There’s something wrong with him. I’ve watched him for years. He gets into fistfights with reporters… I mean, everything he does, he’s a volatile guy. He’s a nutjob.”

Of course, a lot of this flies in the face of what has been revealed by reporters during an investigation that is still ongoing. (Though there have been some dicey things said by those involved, too.) But this is just the “opinion” of a guy who floats baseless conspiracy theories about non-existent voter fraud, and who has a long history of making bizarre claims preceded by the words “people are saying…” The only surprise is that he didn’t spout this nonsense earlier.

(Via The Wrap)

The Black Panther sequel, subtitled Wakanda Forever, won’t open for just over another year from now, but it’s still shooting. And this week it was announced production would need to take a little pause. As per The Hollywood Reporter, at the end of this month cast and crew will take a break until the beginning of the year so that one of its stars can convalesce after an injury.

Sources tell THR that Letitia Wright was injured back in August while shooting a sequence that involved a stunt rig while production had moved from Atlanta to Boston. What exactly happened to her has not been revealed, but the injury was severe enough that production has had to work around her. At this point, though, it appears they shot all they can that doesn’t involve Wright’s Shuri, sister to the late Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa. Production is expected to reconvene in early 2022.

None of this will delay the film’s release. As of now, it’s still scheduled to bow on Nov. 11 of next year. A few weeks ago the film, along with many Marvel and/or Disney titles, was pushed back, moving from July 8 to its current spot, just ahead of Thanksgiving 2022.

Wright’s Shuri was a fan-favorite, and she was given a more prominent role in the sequel after people praised her for being both a comic relief and a bona fide badass with STEM skills. In real life, Wright has denied claims that she’s being skeptical of COVID-19 vaccines, which have become requirements across the industry.

(Via THR)

After he was forced to cancel last year’s edition of the festival, Travis Scott and his fans were extremely excited for the return of his trademark Astroworld Festival which he launched back in 2018. However, that excitement quickly turned into tragedy and chaos on the showcase’s first day. Houston’s KHOU and the Associated Press report that at least eight deaths and hundreds of injuries occurred during Travis’ solo set to end the first night of the Astroworld Festival. Fire Chief Samuel Peña spoke about the incident during a press conference after the festival on Friday night.

“The crowd began to compress towards the front of the stage, and that caused some panic, and it started causing some injuries,” he said to reporters. “People began to fall out, become unconscious, and it created additional panic.” He added that around 9:38 PM local time, the incident became a “mass causality event” as medical units on hand were “quickly overwhelmed” by the “scores of people” that were treated for injuries. Peña confirmed 17 people were transported to local hospitals, including 11 who were under cardiac arrest. A 10-year-old was one of the many people hospitalized as a result of the incident at the festival. In total, more than 300 people were treated on-site at Astroworld.

As a result, Astroworld Festival organizers announced that day two of the showcase is canceled. They also released an official statement on the matter early Saturday morning. “Our hearts are with the Astroworld Festival family tonight especially those we lost and their loved ones,” they wrote. “We are focused on supporting local officials however we can. With that in mind the festival will no longer be held on Saturday. As authorities mentioned in their press conference earlier, they are looking into the series of cardiac arrests that took place. If you have any relevant information on this, please reach out to @houstonpolice.” They added, “Thank you to our partners at the Houston Police Department, Fire Department, and NRG Park for their response and support.”

A number of posts from fans show the frantic moments that took place inside the crowd as many were left to give CPR to fellow attendees while screaming for help from security and medics. One post went into great detail about the chaos and suffocating atmosphere that was present in the crowd. Another showed attendees’ desperate but unfortunately unsuccessful attempt to grab a cameraman’s attention and notify them of what was happening within the crowd.

You can view the statement from Fire Chief Samuel Peña and Astroworld Festival organizer above. You can also view tweets from attendees below.

One of Kyrie Irving’s final remaining paths to potentially being able to play for the Brooklyn Nets this season without getting a COVID-19 vaccine was effectively closed off on Friday night. New York City mayor-elect Eric Adams appeared on CNN on Friday and got asked by Wolf Blitzer about the city’s vaccine mandate, which is the reason why the unvaccinated Irving is unable to suit up for the Nets right now.

While Adams said that he is a Nets fan and that he thinks Irving is “a piece that we need for a championship,” he said that any resolution to the situation would have to come on the NBA’s end.

“New York City is not going to change their rule,” Adams said. “And again, it is up to the NBA and Kyrie to come to a full understanding on how to keep him on the Nets and to continue to look at all of our athletes that are coming here. Again, I think the NBA and Kyrie’s going to come to a conclusion on this.”

Nets coach Steve Nash was informed of this after the team beat the Detroit Pistons on Friday night and made clear he did not expect the city to change its mandate once Adams is sworn into office.

While Irving can practice with the Nets and play in road games, the team made the decision that he would not join them until he gets vaccinated.

The Brooklyn Nets headed to Detroit on Friday night to take on the upstart Pistons. With Brooklyn leading by double digits during the third quarter, James Harden found himself in a situation where all he had to do was bend over and pick up a basketball that was rolling directly in front of him.

That, however, did not happen, for some reason. Harden tried to take Saddiq Bey 1-on-1, but the second-year forward poked the ball away from him. It rolled into the backcourt, where Harden sprinted after it before the ball was at his feet.

At this point, one would think he’d just pick it up and go about his business, but for one reason or another, he kinda just stood there and seemed like he thought it was going to roll out of bounds? Anyway, Harden didn’t realize that Bey saw him slow down and started chasing after the ball, and Bey scooped it up, took a few dribbles, and got a pretty easy dunk.

Ian Eagle called this a “mental mistake” by the former league MVP. That very well might be the case, or something else could have happened here. Whatever the case may be, hopefully Harden addresses it after the game, because it’s a unique one.

In 2021, celebrity weed brands are far from a new phenomenon. From Seth Rogen and Travis Scott to Justin Bieber and Jay-Z, famous people cannot stop digging their hands into the fertile soil that is the modern cannabis space. But scanning the names above, it’s hard not to notice that most of those famous faces seem to be dudes. This despite the fact that according to Forbes, a 2019 study found that 37% of executive-level positions in the cannabis industry were held by women — much higher than the national average across other industries.

Still, famous women don’t seem to be scooping up weed partnerships at the same rate as famous men. Where is our Rihanna or Doja Cat weed? Ariana Grande doesn’t have a strain yet?

Enter Forbidden Flowers, actress, model, and singer Bella Thorne’s new cannabis brand. Forbidden Flowers, at least by marketing standards, is a breath of fresh air in the cannabis space, with its aggressively feminine branding splashed across colorful pre-rolls and sparkling flower jars, it’s probably the only weed brand with packaging that can be described as “pretty” (though Rogen’s Houseplant, with its fancy tin boxes, comes incredibly close).

“I wanted the brand to be an embodiment of my free spirit and personality,” Thorne said in an interview with Forbes in March. “That is why you see the fun, soft, glitter aesthetic. I feel this type of flirty aesthetic is something you don’t see a lot in the industry.”

Though the aesthetic is front and center, it seems Thorne is relying less on her famous face to move product and more on an eye-catching visual and a smart partnership with a cultivator that knows what they’re doing. Each strain of Forbidden Flowers has been cultivated by beloved California brand Glass House Farms (Mission Health Associates) and feature sun-grown cannabis straight out of Santa Barbara.

On paper, that all sounds great. But all that really matters is how it smokes. To get a full picture of the brand, we smoked four different strains from the line to see whether Forbidden Flowers is merely another celebrity vanity project or if it deserves to sit amongst the best of celebrity-branded cannabis. Ready? Let’s smoke.

Presentation & Labeling

The full line of Forbidden Flowers consists of four different strains all curated toward specific moods or mindsets. Each jar contains the strain name, as well as an indicator of the strain’s general vibe but refrains from disclosing whether the strain is an indica, sativa, or hybrid. I’m not totally against this idea — as I’ve always considered sativa, indica, and hybrid to be very vague umbrella terms for bud that can impart a wide variety of different effects and moods — but that might matter to you, so it should be mentioned.

The labeling also leaves off any terpene information and only lists the THC content, CBD content, and packaging date. It’s pretty barebones.

The moods and strains are as follows: Hype Up — Topanga Sunrise, Chill Out — Midnight Thornberry, Turn On — Violet Daydream, and perhaps the weirdest Zone In — Low Key Lazy. That last mood and strain name don’t match up, but I love how evocative the presentation is. When coupled with that colorful glass jar and sparkly top, the whole thing helps to create a sensory experience before we even smoke it. We’ve come a long way from the days of illegal cannabis when we’d get strain names like “Chemical Cat Piss” in tiny ziplock bags

On presentation, we give it a B+. Any time a weed jar makes for great decoration while still providing an air-tight fit that’ll keep your bud from stinking up the room, it’s a winner, but we’d have liked to see some more concrete information on the labeling for the hardcore stoners who like to get granular on the details.

Zone In — Low Key Lazy

THC: 27.78%
CBD: 0.06%

Contradictory strain name aside, Low Key Lazy’s labeling suggests it’s aimed toward focus and productivity, and it pretty much delivers on that front. If you’re expecting a strain that will somehow boost your creativity, I don’t know that any truly can, but what Low Key Lazy will do is not weigh you down, and that’s important if you’re in the mindset of getting things done.

On the nose, this bud is pungent with a slight sweetness that makes it a pleasure to smoke. The high comes on quickly, but not in a way that makes you feel heavily stoned. It’s mostly cerebral but doesn’t leave you feeling spacey or forgetful. After a few minutes, I started to feel light-headed and a glossy glaze covered my eyes, so I’d suggest this strain as an accompaniment to more menial work that you need to get done, rather than your passion projects. If it’s something that requires a high level of focus, this might make you a little too high if you aren’t an everyday smoker with a high tolerance.

Hype up — Topanga Sunrise

THC: 31.56%
CBD: .11%

I love a good wake and bake strain, and Topanga Sunrise offers just that. This one is geared toward energy and motivation, and while I can’t say a big bowl of this stuff made me motivated or energetic, it is the sort of strain you want to smoke before entering an amusement park, going on a hike, to a concert, or the beach. It gets you incredibly high, without feeling lazy or like you can’t function. The high is completely cerebral, almost psychedelic. It’ll make you marvel at shit like glittering sun rays or the smell of wet grass, while still allowing you to feel fully functional.

It’s very sweet on the nose with a dirty earth and pine flavor. It’s not the best tasting strain, so I wouldn’t reach for the vaporizer or bong to get a better taste. Roll this one up as a joint or a blunt and make whatever daily activity you have ahead of you a million times better.

Chill Out — Midnight Thorneberry

THC: 21.56%
CBD: 0.04%

Midnight Thorneberry is easily Forbidden Flowers’ most flavorful strain. On the nose, you get deep and fragrant berry notes and that smell thankfully translates to the flavor. This strain smokes smoothly and is not in the least bit harsh or cough-inducing. Midnight Thorneberry is geared toward chilling out and it delivers, after a few minutes my eyelids felt heavy and my body was vibrating in euphoric tingles. It’s the perfect strain for binge-watching marathons or any other activity that involves snacking and hanging out on the couch.

Unlike the other strains this one doesn’t pack as powerful a punch, so just because you smoke it, that doesn’t mean your day is done as you sink deeply into the couch. Having said that, if you’re trying to kill some intense pain or a headache, you’re going to need something a bit more powerful than this. But for de-stressing, it’s perfect.

Turn On — Violet Daydream

THC: 25.92%
CBD: .07%

Now here we are at the strain everyone is going to be most interested in, Violet Daydream. Violet Daydream is sub-labeled as Turn-On and is geared toward intimacy and connection. That sounds nice but we know where your head went. Everyone wants to get their hands on the strain that’s going to get them to f*ck, and marijuana can absolutely be a sexual enhancer in multiple ways, but it’s a case-by-case basis. There is no single marijuana strain that is going to turn people on, we need to accept that, but marijuana can help people better perform in a multitude of ways, whether that’s from simple de-stressing, lowering inhibitions, anxiety, or upping your sensory experiences.

This is the sort of case where knowing which terpenes are present in the strain would help some people. Will Violet Daydream definitely turn you on? No, not necessarily. But it is a great social strain.

On the nose, Violet Daydream is very sweet, almost strawberry-like with frosty green nugs and a sweet fruity taste. The high provides you with a giggly euphoria that will remind you why getting high in a group so fun. This is a great one to bring out when you have a house full of people you haven’t seen in a while and want to connect without any awkwardness. It opens you up socially and in general, just makes you feel good.

The Bottom Line:

Overall Bella Thorne’s Forbidden Flowers exceeds what we’ve come to expect from a celebrity-branded weed. It doesn’t sacrifice quality or try to upsell you with Thorne’s famous name. One major gripe I had with the bud was that each jar featured a fair share of thick stems and overall wasn’t quite as sticky as I’d like it to be.

Shortcomings aside, this is one of the better celebrity-branded cannabis brands out there and we look forward to how they continue to evolve. As of now, the crown still belongs to Rogen though.

Fans of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are gonna love this: Some guy just broke up a fight using the power of pizza.

A restaurant surveillance video has gone viral on Reddit, showing two dudes getting into a sidewalk brawl. Outside diners enjoy a free show as one guy slams the other into the concrete. Then suddenly, our hero emerges. Whoosh!

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He walks out of the restaurant toward his table, pizza in hand (is he bringing the pizza to his family? Is he a waiter? So much mystery). The Pizza Man does a double take, then hurriedly walks toward the scuffle.

Is he about to “use the molten cheese method” and smash the pizza into one of the dudes faces, as one Reddit user mentioned? Nay, the Pizza Man is altruistic. Instead of inciting violence, he presents a pepperoni flavored peace offering, helping the men to their feet. Seriously, is it too late to give this man a Nobel Prize?

As if lifted from a spell, the two men take a slice and cease to punch each other senseless. Which begs the question: Were they both just hangry?

Pizza Man’s heroic deed even inspired a new song in the Reddit comments:

“Whennnn youuuuu fight your homie, then there’s pepperoni That’s Amore!!”

“When you fight with a lust but you prefer pizza crust, that’s amore!!”

“When a guy hits your eye but there’s free pizza pie — that’s amore!”

That, my friends, is what the kids would call a “bop.”

After a few pats on the back, the would-be brawlers each go their separate ways, proving once again that pizza solves everything.

Next time you are about to enter a murderous rage, follow the Pizza Man’s example and just grab a slice instead.