Category: News

No one can deny that Elon Musk is a master at building his own lane. He did it with PayPal, changing the way we buy things online forever. He did it with Tesla, making electric cars cool and desirable (something the Prius could never do). He’s doing it with SpaceX, likely beating NASA in the quest to build the first landable and reusable rocket. Dude knows how to win.

So when Elon Music semi-jokingly suggested he’d be throwing his hat into the tequila game with “Teslaquila” two years back, it just seemed like yet another thing he was sure to succeed at. (If the stoner actually followed through.)

Turns out producing Tequila is a little bit more complicated than electric vehicles and space travel though, at least if you want to call it “Teslaquila” and not, you know, “tequila.” The Verge reports that soon after Elon’s April Fool’s tweet announcing Teslaquila, a legal representative attempted to register the brand in Mexico, which was followed up by an objection in February of 2019 by the Tequila Regulatory Council, the body responsible for authorizing the manufacture, consumption, and trade of tequila, and later rejected by the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property.

The main issue with Teslaquila was that the name was too similar to the word tequila, which is a designation of origin and can only be rightfully used by the tequila agribusiness. Calling a tequila Teslaquila might cause confusion about where the product comes from, something the Tequila Regulatory Council takes very seriously. Meaning if Elon seriously wants to get in the tequila game, he’ll have to call his product something else.

Which is good because that name is dorky as f*ck.

Ever the early adopter and quick adapter, Teslaquila has pivoted to Tesla Tequila and is officially registered in both Mexico and the United States and is associated with the Destiladora del Valle de Tequila, in Tequila, Jalisco, a legit tequila distillery. While much of this tequila is still shrouded in mystery, we at least now know the name. We’ve also learned that the original idea for a lightning-shaped bottle, modeled after the Tesla GPS charging station icons, is unlikely. The glass bottles have been called “impossible to mass-produce” by The Verge.

So Elon is 0-2 in the tequila game. But if Tesla Tequila turns out at least half as good as the car company that shares its name, it just might be able to compete with other celebrity-driven agave spirits expresions, which range from The Rock’s tequila to the Breaking Bad duo’s famed mezcal.

It’s not that Quibi, the about-to-die “quick bite” streaming service, never trended on Twitter. It’s that it only trended when the news about it was bad. Back in late October, a mere six months after launching, the company announced it was shutting up shop, with the death date set “around” December 1. The day before that proposed day, social media finally started talking about Quibi again — but it wasn’t even to mourn any of its many real shows, which still need to find another home.

On Monday, Twitter seized upon a Quibi show entitled Jack Sparrow House, whose Wikipedia page describes it as a reality television show concerning “fourteen Jack Sparrow impersonators in a single family home who were eliminated if they broke character.”

Would you watch a show about Johnny Depp-in-Pirates of the Caribbean impersonators, especially if each episode was a mere 10 minutes long? Of course you would. Alas, it was not to be. Not only is Quibi about to shuffle off this mortal coil, but Jack Sparrow House never existed. It was some yukster’s dumb Wikipedia joke. Here’s some more of its absurd Wiki description:

“Quibi head of content Colin Davis described the show as ‘more of an endurance contest than a true talent competition.’ Quibi head of brand and marketing Megan Imbres described the show as ‘the source of a significant amount of litigation.’ Three contestants were kicked off the show after separate public defecation incidents and one contestant was forced to withdraw upon discovering the house was within 500 feet of an elementary school.”

Quibi wasn’t without worthwhile shows. The Anna Kendrick sex doll show was one. The Reno 911 revival was another. The short-form streamer content may have struck a nerve in another age, when people once again are able to leave their homes and kill time waiting on lines. Its radical form of narrative storytelling may get to be explored again, in a better tomorrow.

But for now, people have little but jokes for a streamer that never took off, whose owners wasted over a billion dollars to get nowhere. And they couldn’t enough of a show that, despite being fake, seemed like the perfect distillation of what Quibi was, in its too short life.

And people had jokes about Quibi itself.

Some pointed out that Quibi’s Twitter account is currently locked to non-followers.

And there were those who sincerely mourned the many writers, directors, actors, crew, etc. who believed in Quibi as next-level content, and whose hard work may not have a home for quite some time.

In the meantime, enjoy Quibi while it lasts — if you ever signed up for it in the first place. If it’s not gone first thing December, it still won’t be around by the time the 45th American president formally concedes.

Travel will return. That’s a foregone conclusion. Vaccines are on the horizon (though their full rollout worldwide may take years). Once hitting the road is on the table again, expect things to be different. The industry has been rocked by the pandemic, going back to the way things once were would be ridiculous and ill-advised.

Hopefully, when travel does come back in full, we’ll be ready to travel smarter, more sustainably, and with a real purpose. Doing it “for the ‘Gram” isn’t reason enough (though adventure and fun certainly are). One way that we see travel evolving is a continued emphasis on thinking local, accessible, and neighborly. The era of constantly flying around the globe for every vacation — even for the span of a few days — should be on pause. At least until a less climate-punishing way to fly comes along.

That means more trips around this nation. Including visits to America’s small towns.

Why small towns? For years now, the places in between the big cities, the big monuments, and the big attractions have been overlooked by tourists chasing IG fodder. It’s time to slow down and look at what’s available away from the spots everyone has spent the past five years snapping endless photos of. There’s so much more out there, folks. And when traveling safely is part of our lives again, it’ll be time to find the spaces in between the tentpole destinations.

To help us breakdown some of the great small towns in the U.S., we reached out to professional travelers who see the world for a living. There was really only one parameter here: Think small. Places like Truckee (NV) not Reno; or Oxford (MS) not Jackson. The largest population on this list is around 77,000 people; the smallest is 298. Check each entry out below and add your favorites to your rapidly-lengthening travel wish list.

Scranton, PA — Melanie Sutrathada

WHY IT’S SPECIAL:

I first found out about Scranton, PA, because it was the setting for the TV show The Office. If I’m honest, I kind of imagined (and maybe hoped) that Dwight Shrute and Michael Scott might be waiting for me around every corner, ready to shout “The Electric City!” While that didn’t happen, I did find a magical town with beautiful rolling hills, charm for days, and a sense of history and pride that can’t be beat.

ONE CAN’T-MISS ACTIVITY:

You have to take the Steamtown Fall Foliage Train Excursion if you’re in Scranton in the fall. The tours take you throughout Lackawanna County and have the most breathtaking scenic views you could imagine. Seriously, you’ll never look at the changing leaves in the same way after this tour in Scranton.

ONE SPOT TO EAT and/or DRINK:

Go back in time at Madame Jenny’s, the speakeasy inside the Bittenbender Building on Franklin Avenue. It’s the perfect place to enjoy a great cocktail and live music after hours.

PRO TIP:

Scranton has so much to offer in terms of the great outdoors. Whether you live for zip-lining or are looking to ride ATVs for the first time, Scranton is the place to be! Set aside a few days to kayak down the river or hike for hours and hours on end. You will not regret it.

Racine, WI — Phil Calvert

WHY IT’S SPECIAL:

About 40 minutes south of Milwaukee and an hour twenty minutes north of Chicago, lies a beautiful town in-between called Racine. This is an amazing Midwest city with plenty of activities from outdoor sports to museums to beaches, and some quality nightlife (in non-pandemic times, anyway).

Unfortunately, what is amazing for some is not for others. Racine — along with Milwaukee and Kenosha — is among the most racially segregated cities in the region. After the shooting of Jacob Blake, though, it’s impressive how many initiatives to support Black-owned businesses and the Black community have been launched. Go support them.

ONE CAN’T-MISS ACTIVITY:

Go check out the blue waters of North Beach (Certified Blue Wave clean beach!) or the must-see Mahogany Gallery, a premier art exhibition dedicated to some dope art and history.

ONE SPOT TO EAT and/or DRINK:

Definitely Mrs. Betty’s Kitchen! The Jerk Chicken Noodle Soup is phenomenal. For dessert, you can’t go anywhere other than Yogi’s Pud’n for the best pudding in the world!

PRO TIP:

My second home outside the U.S.A. is Denmark, and Racine has the largest North American settlement of Danes. So you have to absolutely try “Wisconsin’s Official State Pastry,” the “Kringle,” which is a delicious Danish pastry.

Two Harbors, CA — Kinga Philipps

WHY IT’S SPECIAL:

Catalina is only 22 miles off the coast of Los Angeles yet absolutely worlds away. It’s a nature lover’s paradise with a rich history of Native Americans, movie moguls, and wild bison roaming the hills (left behind after a western film was shot on the island in the 1920s).

ONE CAN’T-MISS ACTIVITY:

You can hike, mountain bike, camp, kayak, boat, and fish. But the must-do is diving the magnificent kelp forests and looking for the California state fish, Garibaldi (giant black sea bass), leopard sharks, and ubiquitous bat rays.

ONE SPOT TO EAT and/or DRINK:

Pretty much only one option: Harbor Reef Restaurant & Saloon. Try the Buffalo Milk. It’s a mix of vodka and cream. No real buffalo used.

PRO TIP:

Book the tent cabin camping in Two Harbors well in advance. For sunset, climb to the top of the barbed wire hike for spectacular views and a reveal of why it’s called that. Emerald Cove is a must for a swim. Its name is true to its color. Say, “hello,” to the two resident octopuses who live there.

Union, WA — Zach Johnston

WHY IT’S SPECIAL:

Union is one of those places that you can easily miss by simply staying on Highway 101. That’s a shame. The town is tiny and stretched along the misty shores of the Hood Canal. There’s a small store, a Tex-Mex joint with a bar, a few antique shops, a small tavern in an a-frame next to hotel cabins in the woods, a harbor, a deli with a pizza bar, and the Alderbrook Resort.

That’s actually it. The rest is misty rainforest hikes and cold, inky, and calm seas.

ONE CAN’T-MISS ACTIVITY:

In essence, Union is a home base for digging into the wider world of the Hood Canal and eastern reaches of the Olympic Peninsula and national park. You can hike around the immediate area, thanks to trails supported by Alderbrook Resort. You can also rent boats and go out on the water for fishing or just enjoying the scenery — the southern Olympic Mountains are in full view from the water. This is the sweet spot for diving into the best of small-town western Washington with the sea, forests, and mountains at your doorstep. I guess that’s two can’t-miss activities but they go hand-in-hand in a town as small as Union.

ONE SPOT TO EAT and/or DRINK:

The bar and restaurant at Alderbrook is the spot. I post up at the bar almost every night I’m in town. The cocktails are on point, big, and not expensive. The bar menu highlights local seafood from Hama Hama Oysters to fresh-caught Dungeness crabs to locally smoked salmon. Don’t sleep on the clam chowder either. It pairs nicely with a local craft beer or wine with a view of the Canal outlined by the firs and cedars leading up to the craggy peaks of the Olympics — on a clear day, that is.

PRO TIP:

Day trips are the key to a stay in Union. Two trips are a must while you’re there and both are around 30 minutes away — by car — from Union.

One, head up the 101 to Lilliwaup and the Hama Hama Oyster Saloon. Along the way, stop off at Skokomish to pick up some smoked salmon. The Oyster Saloon is the perfect way to spend an afternoon eating seafood harvested literally a few feet away, drinking local wine and beer, and making new friends around firepits.

Two, head to Hoodsport and then up to Staircase to access the rainforests of Olympic National Park. It’s a very accessible way to get into the park and enjoy the moss-laden firs and cedars, vistas across Alpine valleys, and great hiking — though, you’ll probably need raingear.

Avalon, CA — Justin Walter

WHY IT’S SPECIAL:

If you’re itching for a European escape but bummed a U.S. passport likely won’t do the trick for a while, I’ve got your solution! Just an hour boat ride from Los Angeles is the island escape of Avalon. This 2.9-square-mile area of Catalina Island will transport you to a Mediterranean-style getaway at the fraction of the cost and travel time (plus, no passport needed). With crystal clear Croatian-like turquoise waters, Avalon is an oasis for a post-pandemic unwind or a hot spot for adrenaline-pumping outdoor adventures.

ONE CAN’T-MISS ACTIVITY:

One thing that’s a must, scuba diving at Casino Point Dive Park. Not certified? No worries! You can do a PADI discovery dive in Catalina’s world-class kelp forests and coral reefs.

ONE SPOT TO EAT and/or DRINK:

When it’s time to dry off, celebrate your underwater excursion with tropical drinks at a tiki bar. Luau Larry’s offers live music and views of the harbor to help you continue living your best island life…in Los Angeles County!

PRO TIP:

If you’re not sold on experiencing Catalina underwater, do it from above — via parasailing, zip-lining, or suspended ropes courses.

Leavenworth, WA — Steve Bramucci

WHY IT’S SPECIAL:

The best Christmas of my adult life was spent in Austria. And while Leavenworth isn’t an exact facsimile of the German/ Austrian holiday experience, it’s incredibly close. It’s not just the distinct Bavarian winter charm that the city recreates, either. It’s also the small-town friendliness.

There are so many cheesy travel slogans about places that feel welcoming, but this is one spot on the globe that lives up to all of them. It’s so folksy — with locally made toffee, rich hot chocolate, and hearty stews around every corner — that it practically makes your teeth ache. Leavenworth also nails other key aspects of the Bavarian winter experience, namely the sledding, the beer, and the spas.

Seriously, make your plans now (as you can see, I recommend a winter visit). This is a true gem and a genuinely unique small-town travel experience.

ONE CAN’T-MISS ACTIVITY:

If you’re looking for luxury, the Leavenworth Post Hotel spa offers serious bliss. The subterranean pool and healing plunge tubs are the next best thing to Austria’s famous Aqua Dome. The rooms are minimalist and incredibly cozy — exactly the mix of warmth and sexiness you crave at an adults-only property like this. (Oh, and yes — it’s very Instagammable.)

ONE SPOT TO EAT and/or DRINK:

München House has all of the Bavarian beers and foods you crave on a trip like this, the service is friendly, and the vibe is charming. That said, Leavenworth Sausage Garden has the widest range of sausages in town and has the exact convivial energy of a Bavarian beer tent come holiday-time.

PRO TIP:

Get a plastic sled before rolling into town. If there’s snow on the ground people will be sledding everywhere and that’s the sort of community-based fun you don’t want to miss out on.

Hood River, Oregon — Steve’s Pick 2

WHY IT’S SPECIAL:

There’s no need to Google them all, Hood River (OR) is on literally every best/most liveable/ most adventurous city list ever made. In the winter, it’s cozy and in easy striking distance of world-class ski runs. In the summer, it’s a cruisy, folksy little surf/ ski town more than a hundred miles from the ocean.

The surf that Hood River is famous for is wind/kitesurfing. It’s also renowned for paddleboarding, sailing, and foil riding. When you’re not tearing across the famous Hood Canal, there are hikes just about everywhere you look, with waterfalls, plunge pools, and cliff jumps all in easy driving distance.

This being Oregon, there’s no shortage of eating and drinking options when your adventures are done for the day. The quaint shops and friendly locals only add to the small-town energy of the place.

ONE CAN’T-MISS ACTIVITY:

My favorite hike in the United States is the nearby Oneonta Gorge — where you walk up a stream, through a mossy slot canyon, and up to a dramatic waterfall. My biases aside, Tamanawas Falls and Punchbowl Falls are in the same area and both similarly stunning. So while the no-brainer answer here is “get out on the river”, I’ll assume you’re doing that and add “go for a hike.”

ONE SPOT TO EAT and/or DRINK:

Hood River Distillers produces an incredibly diverse array of spirits and liqueurs, all of which can be tasted at their tasting room in town. The staff is friendly and the range of what you can try is nearly unparalleled. Don’t miss the Elderberry Liqueur or the Old Delicious Apple Brandy.

PRO TIP:

Adventures are exhausting. And they always take longer than you thought. Plus you’ll want some rest and you might have some rusty mornings thanks to the breweries in town. So here’s the tip: Book in at the very cool, highly stylized Hood River Hotel and plan on an extra night. Maybe two.

It’s been nine months since we found ourselves thrust into a global pandemic the likes of which the world hasn’t seen in a century. Now here we are on the precipice of administering vaccines that will hopefully put an end to it, many months ahead of the expected schedule.

The speed with which scientists and pharmaceutical companies have raced to figure out how to make a novel virus vaccine both safe and effective has been impressive to say the least. It’s a testament to modern medicine, innovation, and dedication on the part of the scientists who have worked tirelessly to bring it to fruition.

As of today, Moderna is asking for FDA approval of its mRNA vaccine, which trials show to be 94.1% effective in preventing coronavirus infection and 100% effective at preventing severe cases. Pfizer’s vaccine has shown similar effectiveness.

While many people may be skeptical of a vaccine created in such a short period of time, experts have expressed confidence in the safety data that’s been released so far. But there’s one big element to the safety data that doesn’t get focused on nearly as much as it should—the courageous volunteers who literally risked their lives so that scientists could learn whether their work actually works and the rest of us can feel safe (or at least safer) getting a new vaccine.

When people volunteer to test new vaccines, they’re not only agreeing to whatever surprise side effects the vaccine might cause, but they’re also agreeing to be purposefully exposed to whatever disease the trial is testing for. And since trial participants don’t know if they are receiving the actual vaccine or a placebo, there is very real risk of having no protection whatsoever from said disease.

While the numbers from the Moderna trial indicate a resounding success, it came with a tragic-but-necessary cost. The way a trial works is that some participants receive the vaccine being tested, and others receive a placebo that doesn’t do anything. While none of the actual vaccine recipients became severely ill with COVID-19 in the Moderna trial—which vaccine researcher Paul Offit says is “absolutely remarkable”—30 of the 185 people who contracted symptomatic cases of the virus in placebo group did develop severe cases. And one person in the placebo group died what Moderna has called “a COVID-19-related death.”

We don’t know the name of the individual who died. But we do know that they knowingly and willingly risked their own life to save millions more, and such a sacrifice should not go unrecognized. Whoever this nameless, unsung hero was, we salute them.

Our gratitude must also extend to those who became severely ill from the virus in the trial, as well as everyone who volunteered to take on those risks to help science do its thing.

So far, there are reported side effects that one might expect from any vaccine—tenderness in the injection spot as well as some people reporting flu-like symptoms for a day or so as the vaccine kicked their body into fighting gear—but they didn’t know what unexpected reactions there might be going into it. Volunteers get compensated for travel and time they have to take off of work to go to appointments, but it’s not like they’re making real money. It’s a real sacrifice with an unknown outcome, and many volunteers express that they signed up because they wanted to do something to be helpful.

So thank you to the tens of thousands of people who volunteered to take one for the team, putting their own health on the line to save us from further pandemic suffering. While we celebrate the scientists whose knowledge and skill and collaboration have brought us vaccines in record time, let’s also cheer for the everyday folks who offered up themselves as guinea pigs to help us move past the pandemic and help humanity return to normal life. We owe them an enormous debt of gratitude.

Donald Trump has been having a rough time trying to overturn the election results in Pennsylvania. To add insult to injury, he’s been relentlessly mocked by PA Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman, who’s become a social media star in the days following the election for his brutally refreshing takedowns of the president’s failed legal strategies. Case in point: the PA Supreme Court has dismissed a significant lawsuit from the Trump campaign that would’ve invalidated millions of votes. It was yet another stunning blow to the president’s legal team, who has been consistently failing in court.

Feeling confident with his state’s record at swatting down attempts to overturn the election, Fetterman quoted Ariana Grande in response to a new resolution from Republican state representatives that has “zero chance” of flipping the results for Trump.

Fetterman’s penchant for man-handling Trump and his surrogates earned him the nickname “Lt. Gov. Stone Cold” from John Oliver, and his hulking frame caught the attention of comedian Leslie Jones. The former SNL star posted a thirsty video on Twitter, where she got down with Fetterman mopping the floor with Rudy Giuliani and said she wants him as her personal bodyguard.

You can watch Jones’ hilarious reaction video below:

While Fetterman is well known in the state of PA, he rose to national prominence shortly after the election when he delivered a badass rebuke of the Trump’s strategy of claiming election fraud. Fetterman assured MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle that the counting process was going smoothly and firmly stated that the only problem with the process is “Trump campaign showing up on our corner in Philadelphia like some sad carnival barker, making outlandish claims.” The massive lieutenant governor also made it clear why the president had no chance of overturning the results. “Math is math.”

(Via John Fetterman on Twitter)

Back in 2018, Machine Gun Kelly made headlines when he released the Eminem diss track “Rap Devil,” a clap back to Em’s Kamikaze number “Not Alike.” Eminem settled the beef shortly thereafter by obliterating Kelly with the follow up “Killshot,” which incidentally became one of the most-viewed YouTube premieres in history. While Kelly put the beef behind him and is now celebrating his No. 1 pop-punk album Tickets To My Downfall, he can’t help but blame the diss track for his 2019 album’s flop.

In a recent conversation with actor Dave Franco for Interview Magazine, Kelly explained why his beef with Eminem was to blame for the poor reception of his album Hotel Diablo.

“That was the first time I really expressed my true self with no outside influence, meaning the label. As a hip-hop album, it’s flawless front to back, and also a hint at the evolution of how I went into a pop-punk album. But it was coming off the tail-end of that infamous beef [with Eminem]. So no one wanted to give it the time of day. It’s like if you make a sh*tty movie and then you come out with a great movie right after, but people want to focus on the fact that they hated whatever you just did. What I did in the beef was exactly what it should be, but that project wasn’t welcomed. The next album came from already feeling like I’d counted out, so I didn’t even care what the public was going to think. That’s why the project was ironically my best received one, because it was the most effortless, with the least outside influence.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Kelly spoke to how critics received his pop-punk pivot:

“I made four albums straight-up not giving a f*ck what critics had to say. But this one, when the numbers were what they were, and the fans were as excited as they were, and the fact that we against all odds got the number-one spot, it was really weird to see that critics couldn’t even be like, ‘Hey, man, way to stick it out and finally show the world that you can conquer all the obstacles.’ It was weird to see people be like, ‘Well, now because you got success, I need to go out of my way to go against the popular opinion and tear away at it.’”

Tickets To My Downfall is out now via Interscope. Get it here.

The monolith plot has officially thickened on Monday, as another mysterious structure has appeared on the other side of the world from where the first one was discovered in the Utah desert.

If you’re just catching up on the monolith talk, Thanksgiving week featured some bewildered members of the Utah Bureau of Land Management who stumbled on a reflective metal tower in the middle of the Utah desert. The group that was scouting some bighorn rams found and documented the monument, then shared the news on a post on the government agency’s website.

Things got weird over the weekend, however, when the structure disappeared as mysteriously as it was discovered. And in what may be the final endgame of the weirdest year on record, a second monolith reportedly surfaced near a significant ancient site in Romania.

The Daily Mail reported on Monday that a new monolith was discovered, while Vice points out that this one appears to be different than the first one now missing from Utah:

This one has what look to be deliberate loop-de-loop scribbles scratched on its entire face and stands at about the same height as its Utah twin. The European monolith is only a few feet away from where an ancient Dacian fortress once stood, according to The Daily Mail.

It doesn’t appear that it’s the same monolith that was taken from Utah and dropped in Romania. It may, however, be more evidence that the works are part of artist John McCracken, who died in 2011 but according to some reports hoped to leave works behind for people to discover well after his death.

Hopefully, this isn’t the beginning of the end of the world, but in that case you’ll probably see it happen in real life, not in a news story online.

Tom Cruise does not fear for his safety too much, that much is clear. He perches atop a speeding train like it’s no big thing. The guy’s a notorious daredevil and devoted to the most bonkers of stunts — he leaps off skyscrapers, and casually dangles from the side of helicopters, and runs everywhere. Still, Tom Cruise knows that the smartest move of all during a pandemic is to take things seriously and mask up. Mission: Impossible 7 has resumed filming in Italy, where Tom can be seen above while taking a breather in Venice. As always, he’s happy to wave to fans, and as one can plainly see, Tom is not messing around with Covid-19. He’s double masked (quite like me hitting the grocery store), with a surgical variety underneath a cooler black exterior mask.

The Daily Mail has even more photos of Tom doing car stunts in Rome alongside co-star Hayley Atwell. Both of them, of course, are taking no chances in between takes and masking up while in close proximity with others. Here’s an Instagram shot from director Chris McQuarrie as he prepared to roll camera near a telltale landmark.

It’s been a long time coming, obviously, given that all movies shut down production earlier this year, and Cruise personally called Norway’s culture minister to reboot European shooting, all before igniting a local controversy involving cruise ships. This followed a Polish bridge kerfuffle and a stunt gone wrong, but things are now humming along throughout Italy for the Cruise train.

Mission: Impossible 7 is currently scheduled for a November 19, 2021 release, and please enjoy this stop-motion rendering (by Victor Patator) of Cruise in stunt mode.

Did you know Tyler the Creator was in Grand Theft Auto V? Apparently, one fan didn’t until he noticed that distinctive Wolf Tyler growl coming from a random non-player character (NPC) during a nostalgic playthrough of the game and shared their realization with Twitter. Of course, it’s easy to overlook Tyler’s character as his dialogue almost entirely consists of goofy nonsequiturs like “You like potato salad, ’cause I like potato salad.” Also, staring at him for an extended period results — as it so often does in real life — in a fight when “Tyler” pulls a gun to pistol-whip the player’s avatar.

Now, this isn’t exactly news for longtime gamers, as Tyler’s appearance (as well as Danny Brown and Flying Lotus) was covered extensively at the time. However, since the game is almost a decade old (it released in September 2013) and Tyler was still the fresh-faced creator of hair-raising projects like Goblin and Wolf, it makes sense that a new generation of gamers who venerates Grammy-winning, Flower Boy Tyler as a superstar would not only be unaware and also astonished by this tidbit. If nothing else, the incident highlights how far he’s come; if he were to voice a character in a game now, it would almost undoubtedly be a starring role. Or, he could very well go the Travis Scott route and actually perform in-game as himself now that he’s one of the most respected superstars in music.

Check out the fan’s “discovery” above.

Rico Nasty has been teasing her upcoming album since this past spring. Now after ushering in the beginning of a new era with the singles “IPhone,” “Own It,” and “OHFR?” Rico Nasty has finally uncovered some more details about her impending release Nightmare Vacation.

Rico Nasty returned Monday to officially unveil her Nightmare Vacation album art and tracklist. Speaking about the project in a recent interview with W Magazine, Rico Nasty addressed certain pressures she faced while penning the album:

“I started feeling like I should make what I hear on the radio. I was only making those songs to please my A&R, like, does this sound mainstream? By the time the studio session is over, you have a song that you wouldn’t listen to if somebody paid you. […] I look back at my tracklist like, not only did I overcome people trying to tell me what I should sound like, but I overcame a f*cking pandemic and was still able to create it. I think I’m on the cusp of being ready to just take sh*t head on, take it for what it is.”

Check out Rico Nasty’s Nightmare Vacation cover art and tracklist below.

1. “Candy”
2. “Don’t Like Me” Feat. Don Toliver and Gucci Mane
3. “Check Me Out”
4. “IPhone”
5. “STFU”
6. “Back & Forth” Feat. Amine
7. “Girl Scouts”
8. “Let It Out”
9. “Losers” Feat. Trippie Redd
10. “No Debate”
11. “P*ssy Poppin”
12. “OHFR?”
13. “10Fo”
14. “Own It”
15. “Smack A B*tch (Remix)” Feat. PPCocaine, Rubi Rose, Sukihana
16. “Smack A B*tch (Bonus)”

Nightmare Vacation is out 12/4 via Sugar Trap / Atlantic. Pre-order it here.

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