Following Georgetown’s 72-71 win over Villanova in the Big East Tournament on Thursday, Hoyas head coach Patrick Ewing made a comment about Madison Square Garden being his “house.” While it seemed like fun coach banter during an interview, it turned out there was some added context here that made Ewing feel like he had to say something.

Ewing, who of course plied his trade at the Garden during his time as a member of the New York Knicks, said after the game that he kept getting stopped by arena security who wanted to see his credentials. It seemed absurd that security at Madison Square Garden, of all places, would not recognize Patrick Ewing, but this is apparently a thing, and James Dolan spoke to Ewing in the aftermath.

One person, unsurprisingly, finds this all baffling. Spike Lee went onto ESPN’s First Take and compared Ewing getting stopped at the Garden to another New York legend being stopped in their old stomping ground.

“I’m not blaming this on Dolan, but there has to be something just wrong at Madison Square Garden,” Lee said. “Can any of you imagine Derek Jeter being stopped entering Yankee Stadium? Magic Johnson being stopped entering the Staples Center? Michael Jordan — the GOAT, don’t hate — Michael Jordan being stopped entering the United Center? WTF?”

Lee went onto say that he called Ewing, who was “hot” over the entire situation. Lee, of course, had his own run-in with Madison Square Garden security in the recent past, as he was not allowed to enter the Garden in early 2020 through his normal entrance, which led to a butting of heads between himself and the franchise.

There’s a new trend spreading across social media where heterosexual men have been identifying as “Super Straight.” They claim this newfound sexual identity is for heterosexuals who only want to be with cisgender people.

Urban dictionary defines being Super Straight as “When you only are heterosexual but you are only attracted to the person that was born the opposite gender.”

So, to put it simply, they are heterosexual people who aren’t attracted to transgender people.

When you take the new sexuality at face value, there’s nothing wrong with only being attracted to cisgender people of the opposite sex. After all, the heart wants what the heart wants. Plus, a trans woman or man probably wouldn’t be interested in someone with such a narrow definition of sexuality anyway.

However, what we’re dealing with isn’t simply someone creating a new banner for a sexual preference. It appears to be an identity created to sow chaos and give people the ability to voice their transphobia while hiding under the guise of having a preference.

The identity appears to have started on February 21 when TikTokker Kyleroyce posted a video titled, “who else is super straight?” The video was later deleted by TikTokk, but then uploaded to YouTube.

Super straight original TikTok video

www.youtube.com

“I’ve made a new sexuality,” Kyleroyce said in his video. “Straight men get called transphobic because I wouldn’t date a trans woman. Now, I’m super straight. I only date the opposite gender, women, that are born women. So you can’t say I’m transphobic now because that is just my sexuality.”

He later explained his video to Insider.

“I created it because I was sick of being labeled with very negative terms for having a preference, something I can’t control, and getting labeled by the community that preaches acceptance with that sort of stuff,” Kyleroyce told Insider. “It was never meant to be hateful towards anyone.”

Now, Kyleroyce can date whomever he likes. There’s nothing wrong with that, but why does he make such a big deal about not dating trans women? Less than one percent of adults in the U.S. identify as transgender. Why is the fact that he’s not attracted to such a small percentage of the population such a major part of his identity?

He says he was “sick of being labeled” which probably means he’s been very vocal about not being attracted to transgender people.

After the initial video caught on, the identity was taken up by right-wing trolls on 4Chan who saw it as an opportunity to provoke the LGBT community.

TikTokker ProcrasClass makes the point that only being attracted to cisgender people of the opposite sex actually makes you less straight.

This Super Straight identity sounds a lot like the Straight Pride movement that had its moment last year. These people took to the streets to proclaim their pride in being straight, just like the LGBT community does in their parades. However, the comparison falls apart pretty quickly.

LGBT people have historically been marginalized and faced prejudice, so having a pride movement was a way for people to stand up for who they are in the face of bigotry. The straight community doesn’t have to deal with the same kind of prejudice (to put it mildly), so to claim straight pride is tantamount to proclaiming your privilege.

Identifying as Super Straight pretty much does the same thing. It’s a way of taking a swipe at a marginalized community under the guise of proclaiming an identity. You aren’t fooling anyone.

Transgender people face tremendous hardships both economic and health-wise stemming from systemic discrimination. They are much more likely to be victims of violence and die by suicide than straight people. Kyleroyce may be “sick of being labeled with very negative terms” but his discomfort pales in comparison to the tremendous obstacles faced by transgender people.

Instead of punching down, maybe these Super Straight people could grow up to become Supermen that spend their time uplifting marginalized communities rather than ostracizing them.

It’s been exactly one year since Caribou, mastermind of producer Dan Snaith, released his acclaimed album Suddenly. To celebrate the album’s anniversary, Snaith tapped several contemporary producers to reimagine songs for the project Suddenly Remixes. Joining musicians like Four Tet and Jessy Lanza, Toro Y Moi put forth his cover of Caribou’s track “Home.”

Toro Y Moi’s remix injects the song with off-kilter synths, turning it from a snapping anthem to a mind-bending tune. Speaking about the remix, Snaith praised Toro Y Moi’s skills:

“[Toro Y Moi] is an incredible musician fluent in seemingly every musical vocabulary but with a sensibility all his own. His remix is like an Alexander Calder mobile or a Kandinsky painting where the musical geometries of the original song circle each other in space.”

Echoing Snaith’s statement, video director Kenworthy described how he transformed the remix into a captivating visual. “When I first heard the mix, I was taken aback—he’s pulled the song apart, laid all the bits on the floor, and made a minimalist sculpture out of little wiggly pieces,” he said. “So, similarly, I want to strip this right back and focus on minute details by making a sort of scratch film—the kind of animation which got me interested in animation in the first place. The idea is that each day I would isolate a tiny fragment of the song and hand animate some little doodles by scratching into black. No preconceived end goal, just whatever occurs to me daily, so it has an improvised, freewheeling, dreamlike, and fragmented quality. Just little weird details and evaporating thoughts. Little fleeting sketches.”

Listen to Toro Y Moi cover Caribou’s “Home” above.

Suddenly Remixes is out now via City Slang/Merge. Get it here.

In a lengthy The New Yorker profile on Cyrus Vance, the Manhattan district attorney tasked with combing through Donald Trump’s questionable finances, journalist Jane Mayer uncovered a shocking and yet not entirely surprising anecdote about the former president. As part of the investigation into the Trump Organization, the company’s CFO Allen Weisselberg is now under the microscope in an attempt to get him to flip on Trump. Through the Weisselberg connection, Mayer was able to get in contact with his former daughter-in-law, Jennifer Weisselberg, who remembered her first encounter with Trump at a shiva in the early 2000s where he acted with all the poise and class that America has come to expect from the one-term president.

Via The New Yorker:

Jennifer told me that she first met Trump before she was married, at Allen Weisselberg’s modest house, in Wantagh, on Long Island. That day, the Weisselberg family was sitting shivah, for Allen’s mother. Trump showed up in a limousine and blurted out, “This is where my C.F.O. lives? It’s embarrassing!” Then, Jennifer recalled, Trump showed various shivah attendees photographs of naked women with him on a yacht. “After that, he starts hitting on me,” she said. Jennifer claimed that Allen Weisselberg, instead of being offended on her behalf, humored his boss: “He didn’t stand up for me!” Asked about this, Weisselberg’s lawyer, Mary Mulligan, said, “No comment.”

While no specific date is given, Mayer reports it took place sometime before 2004, which is when Trump got engaged to his current wife Melania. However, the two had been dating since 1998, so it’ll be interesting to see how the former First Lady handles this latest accusation involving Trump’s infidelity.

(Via The New Yorker)

The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards kicks off this weekend, which means Phoebe Bridgers is getting ready to watch the ceremony as a first-time nominee. She’s up for four Grammys this year, thanks to her acclaimed sophomore album Punisher, including Best New Artist, Best Alternative Album, Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance for her track “Kyoto.” Ahead of this weekend’s ceremony, Bridgers sat down with venerable singer Elton John to discuss her nominations — and John really wants her to win.

Bridgers was a recent guest on John’s radio show Rocket Hour. Speaking about Punisher, John praised it as “a wonderful record of melancholy.” “Your album is like an old friend. It’s like a Tapestry,” he said, comparing it to Carole King’s iconic 1971 effort. “I have records in my life that are reference points and I think Punisher‘s one of those reference points. I can’t pay you a bigger compliment than that.”

Closing off their conversation, John wished Bridgers luck with the ceremony this weekend by saying he’ll “hit someone” if she doesn’t end up winning. “Good luck with the Grammys,” he said. “If you don’t win at least one, I’m going to hit someone.”

John isn’t the only legendary musician Bridgers has worked with recently. Earlier this week, the singer announced that she’ll be joining on a collaborative version of Paul McCartney’s McCartney III, where she’ll cover his track “Seize The Day.”

Bridger’s episode of Rocket Hour premieres on March 13 at noon ET, so when it’s available, check it out here.

It’s not often you see a bowling alley promotional video in general, much less one that grabs the attention of millions of people. But that’s exactly what a video made for Bryant-Lake Bowl, a bowling alley in Minneapolis, has done. Not only has the spot gone viral on social media, but it’s also caught the eye of top Hollywood directors who are praising the tricky direction and camerawork it involves.

The almost-90-second footage begins with a drone camera hovering above the street outside the bowling alley before swooping down through the front doors and zooming around inside the building. It starts off “Okay, this is cool,” but by the time it’s halfway through it’s clear that this isn’t your average drone camera work.

With impressive speed, we’re taken through small openings above the bowling lanes, back behind the pin machines, through narrow corridors no one ever gets to see, under people’s legs, through people’s conversations, around the bar and theater, and ultimately right smack dab in the middle of some flying bowling pins. It’s impressive.

So impressive, in fact, that it caught the eye of Lee Unkrich (director of the hit Pixar film Coco), who retweeted the video from James Gunn (director of Guardians of the Galaxy), with both men sharing their gobsmacked reactions to it.

The surprising cinematic hit comes from Minneapolis-based Rally Studios and was created by cinematographer Jay Christensen and directed by Anthony Jaska. According to the Star Tribune, Christensen and Jaska made the short film to help bring some attention to local businesses that have been struggling.

“If you think about all the small businesses and COVID, their business has been hit, obviously,” Christensen said. “I would go in there and notice that it was pretty empty.” The pair reached out to the bowling alley owner with the idea of showcasing the uniqueness of the place.

The speedy tour in, out, up, and around the various parts of the bowling alley is dizzyingly cool, but the fact that it was all shot in one take is what gives it that “unbelievable” feel.

“It is a true one-take,” Jaska told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “There’s no CGI. That was kind of interesting. But also the positive nature of it — people seeing the skill that it takes and the unique ability it takes to combine the skill of an amazing pilot, the technology of a drone, and the story that can actually be told through a one-take.”

The perfect shot came after 10 or 12 tries in a 2-hour period. They shot the film after hours (for COVID safety) on March 2 and added audio after the fact, since the drone’s buzzing sound interfered with the natural sounds of the bowling alley.

According to the Tribune, Christensen had been doing lots of work with FPV (first-person view) drone camera work since last spring, but he’d never shot drone footage indoors before, which makes the feat all the more incredible. But as remarkable as the camerawork inside the bowling alley is, he said the most difficult shot was actually the very first one—getting through the front door. It was a windy day, he had to make sure no pedestrians were around, and he had to maneuver around a parking meter that was right where he wanted the drone to be.

The hard work paid off, though. Todd Vaziri, a visual effects artist who has worked on blockbuster film franchises such as Star Wars, Star Trek, and Marvel, tweeted: “This kind of wonderful photographic innovation adds to the language and vocabulary of cinema. Just beautiful.”

Director James Gunn not only praised the footage as “incredible” and “stupendous,” but he also said he wanted the duo to join his crew in London when they shoot Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

Christensen and Jaska said they’ve had multiple directors reach out to them, which has come as a surprise. When the Tribune asked about the possibility of working with James Gunn, Jaska said it “seems crazy, but who knows?”

Talent is talent, and sometimes it’s found in the oddest of places. Looking forward to seeing where these guys’ drone work takes them as they explore future projects with the best in the business.

Non-fungible tokens are all the rage these days, as NBA Top Shot has helped usher the age of vast NFT speculation without necessarily needing to know much about cryptocurrency of the blockchain those pieces of media are built upon. Plenty of parties have gotten involved in minting and selling NFTs, which are basically special versions of digital goods with serial numbers or limited supply to create value in the process.

A digital, one-of-a-kind version of Jack Dorsey’s first tweet, for example, sold for millions earlier this week. And while some of the biggest NFT buyers are, perhaps fittingly, people who are already invested in NFTs, interest in the market continues to grow. We’re quite literally seeing memes go up for sale, netting thousands of real dollars in currency in the process. Perhaps the most notable meme of the moment is a throwback: Bad Luck Brian.

As The Verge reported earlier in the week, the sale was actually orchestrated by the creator of another meme: Nyan Cat. Chris Torres put together a number of popular memes from a decade ago and orchestrated their sale as well. The sale took place on Foundation, an online marketplace for art and NFTs that’s seen a surge in interest in recent days. And Bad Luck Brian went for 20 Etherium, a cryptocurrency that currently puts the cost of a once-viral high school yearbook photo at about $35,000.

As Business Insider pointed out, there’s also a Scumbag Steve NFT for sale on Foundation, if you need to jump in on the meme craze before it’s too late.

[via Business Insider]

After initially being postponed, the 63rd Annual Grammys Award Ceremony kicks off this weekend. Leading the nominations is Beyonce, who is up for nine Grammys including both Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year. The additional nominations makes her the most Grammy-nominated female artist in history with an impressive 79 nominations. But despite her recognition, Beyonce will not be seen performing at this year’s event.

This weekend’s ceremony will be taking place in person across five small stages situated around LA in order to minimize interactions. Several artists have been booked to perform at the ceremony, including Cardi B, Bad Bunny, Doja Cat, Taylor Swift, and Dua Lipa. One major star not on the list, though, is Beyonce.

The Recording Academy claims that they extended an offer to Beyonce to perform, but she declined. In a statement to the LA Times, Recording Academy interim chief executive Harvey Mason said, “It’s unfortunate because she’s such a big part of the Recording Academy. We absolutely wish we had her onstage.”

Neither Beyonce nor the Recording Academy has addressed her reason for turning down the event. It may have to do with the concern over attending an in-person event, but it could also be due to the backlash the Recording Academy has faced this past year. Back in January of 2020, former Grammys CEO Deborah Dugan alleged that the Recording Academy has a history of sexual misconduct and corruption, and she wasn’t the only one to say so. After being snubbed of an award this year, The Weeknd slammed the ceremony as corrupt and called for greater transparency in the nomination process. Other artists like Ellie Goulding, Zayn, Fiona Apple, and Lil Wayne have made similar, disdainful remarks about the Grammys.

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

Popstar and actress Jennifer Lopez has reportedly broken up with Major League Baseball player Alex Rodriguez, according to Page Six. The gossip site’s sources say that the former couple has canceled their wedding as Rodriguez prepares for spring training and Lopez shoots her next movie — ironically titled Shotgun Wedding. The former couple previously postponed the wedding twice, apparently got things back on track, but ultimately decided that a split was for the best. They originally announced their engagement in 2019, after dating for two years.

J-Lo told Access Hollywood about the postponements in December, telling the show, “We had to cancel the wedding because of COVID, because of the quarantine. And we actually did it twice, which people don’t know.”

At the time, she said the goal was to “wait it out,” insisting “everything’s cool and it’ll happen when the time is right. I feel like it’s not a huge priority to go and have a big wedding right now, that’s not what life is about.” Page Six posits that the breaking point was a rumor of infidelity between Rodriguez and reality-show star Madison LeCroy. LeCroy appears on Bravo’s Southern Charm.

Lopez, meanwhile, has been shooting Shotgun Wedding in the Dominican Republic. The film has undergone some controversy of its own after previous lead Armie Hammer was replaced in the wake of a scandal involving some untoward text messages.

The best new hip-hop this week sees entries from plenty of new artists headed into Grammy weekend. One of the artists releasing a project this week, Chika, is nominated for a Best New Artist award, while D Smoke, who put out his ode to Sade this week, is nominated for a Best Rap Album award.

This week also saw a sharp uptick in rappers releasing freestyles over other rappers’ beats. IDK, Deante Hitchcock, and Mulatto all contributed to this trend, which may well stem from the ongoing uncertainty of being unable to book tours until enough venues have reopened that the profit outweighs the cost. Freestyles have always been a great way to build brand awareness and keep existing fans sated between projects, so don’t be surprised if even more rappers throw their hats in the freestyle ring before the pandemic is over.

Still, that hasn’t stopped artists from pursuing more traditional avenues in the meantime. Guapdad 4000 dropped his P-Lo-assisted video for “She Wanna” from his upcoming Illmind-produced project 1176, while Joey Badass, Sukihana, Drakeo The Ruler, and more shared videos for their newest records. Meanwhile, a whole heap of other new artists is taking advantage of the relative quiet of Grammy Week to make their marks in hopes of leaving a lasting impression on the game.

Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending March 12, 2021.

Albums/EPs/Mixtapes

6 Dogs — Ronald

The late underground favorite wasn’t well-known by most folks’ standards, but to those who spent their formative years soaking up SoundCloud fare from names like Lil Peep, he was a hero. Fortunately, he left behind enough material for his estate to release at least one warm-sounding posthumous album for fans to cherish as they say goodbye.

Blxst — Just For Clarity [Dual Single]

If Drake’s two-song maxi-single was enough to warrant inclusion on last week’s list, Blxst’s dual release merits a look as well — especially thanks to standout performances from guests Drakeo and Russ.

Chika — Once Upon A Time EP

Her last EP, Industry Games, earned her an RX certification from Uproxx, and her second builds on that foundation, rounding out her already bell-clear vocals and diamond-precise rhymes with even more polish and maturity.

Clever — Crazy

Signed by Post Malone and buoyed an impressive collection of high-profile collaborators including Justin Bieber and Juice WRLD, Clever makes his major-label debut with features from Lil Baby, Lil Wayne, and Post Malone. The tracklist also features a sly hidden message for eagle-eyed fans.

Kalan.FrFr — TwoFr 2

Not many rappers can boast prolific college football careers before making the transition to music (by my count, the list is Phonte and Rexx Life Raj)), but the LA native departed his position as a defensive back for the SDSU Aztecs in 2016. Signed by Roc Nation and dropping songs with fellow City of Angels compatriots like Blxst and G Perico, I’d say it’s worked out pretty well for him since.

Lil Migo — King Of The Trap

Hailing from Memphis, this newcomer drops a star-studded effort that features hometown heroes Blac Youngsta, Moneybagg Yo, and Yo Gotti, as well as major stars like 42 Dugg and Rich The Kid.

Pac Div — Church League Champions [Reissue]

“But, Aaron,” you may say. “Didn’t this mixtape drop almost 11 years ago?” Why yes, it did, thanks for asking. This is also the first time(!) the seminal Los Angeles classic that helped launch “The New West” at the height of the blog era has been available for streaming in that entire time. So. Go listen to it now. Because as I write this, it’s just another day out in sunny LA.

Singles/Videos

AG Club — “UGUDBRU” feat. Sam Truth

The Bay Area collective hijacks one of the culture’s go-to multi-use phrases to make another sneering statement of their anti-establishment stance.

Babyface Ray — “Real N****s Don’t Rap”

Babyface Ray is rapidly becoming one of my favorites, largely because of things like expressing one of my life philosophies to point out the difference between being in the streets and just rapping about it.

Bankroll Freddie — “Rich Off Grass Remix” feat. Young Dolph

Quality Control’s Alabama-bred trap upstart connects with country cousin Dolph for one of the most catchy and uplifting examples of the form to come out in recent years. Congrats to that man for not having to sell drugs to the community.

Beanz — “Waves”

The Rhythm + Flow contestant may not have made it past auditions after her episode two appearance (a travesty, if you ask me) but she’s certainly made use of the exposure since to make more of an impression on the rap game. Here, she utilizes a P-Lo produced beat to show off her charming flow and battle-tested skills.

Big Jade — “Groupies”

Remember when I said it’s a big week for freestyles? Big Jade is not going to be left out.

Jackboy — “Enjoy Every Dolla” feat. Lil Mosey

From the opening guitar riff, this one has all the hallmarks of a hit in the making. Jackboy seems insistent on improving on his mentor Kodak Black’s formula of rapping his ass off over the catchiest beats.

Kenny Mason — “Pup”

The buzzing Atlanta talent turns a slow-burning low-fi beat into a stone-faced banger to announce the impending release of his deluxe version of Angelic Hoodrat.

Kenny Muney –“Poppin It”

The second Kenny to release this week is the Young Dolph-associated Memphian, who goes in a completely different direction. His bass-heavy beat is more propulsive but the rhymes are every bit as hard.

Murda Beatz & Shordie Shordie — “Ride With Shordie”

Captain Hook strikes again with the latest single from Memory Lane. Another frothy creation, this one taps a Latin guitar riff with extra light percussion for Shordie to detail his lifestyle.

Price — “Selfish” feat. Bas & Wyclef Jean

The Audio Push rapper continues his solo run, bringing in Dreamville’s Bas for a verse on a confessional, intricate track that rates more attention.

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