Category: News

What was the moment that made Donald Trump want to run for president? Was it when Barack Obama zinged his eventual-successor at the White House Correspondents Dinner? Or was it the first time that Trump’s daddy didn’t hug him? We may never know, but we do know the moment that he decided to start his own digital media company.

Fox News was the first outlet to call Arizona for president-elect Joe Biden in the election, which “enraged Trump, and gave him something tangible to use in his attacks on the network,” according to Axios. He has since been telling “friends [that] he wants to start a digital media company to clobber Fox News and undermine the conservative-friendly network.” (I assume “friends” means “Melania wearing noise-canceling headphones.”)

Getting carried on cable systems would be expensive and time-consuming. Instead, Trump is considering a digital media channel that would stream online, which would be cheaper and quicker to start. Trump’s digital offering would likely charge a monthly fee to MAGA fans. Many are Fox News viewers, and he’d aim to replace the network — and the $5.99-a-month Fox Nation streaming service, which has an 85% conversion rate from free trials to paid subscribers — as their top destination.

Tomi Lahren is checking her email every three seconds.

Trump wants to “wreck” Fox News (he plans to hammer the channel during vote-count rallies), but Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch welcomes the competition. “We have always thrived with competition,” he said earlier this month. “The only difference today versus some years ago is as our audience has grown and our reach has grown, we see our competition as no longer only cable news providers but also as the traditional broadcast networks.” But the Trump Network has at least eight subscribers already!

(Via Axios)

One of the biggest annual events in country music, the Country Music Association Awards (CMAs), went down last night, and there was some real pop energy there as well. Justin Bieber made his debut at the annual event, joining Dan + Shay to perform their collaborative single “10,000 Hours.”

The ceremony took place at the Nashville Music Center, but the trio instead performed the song on the stage of the empty Hollywood Bowl. They even kept their distance on stage, as everybody was several feet apart.

“10,000 Hours” was nominated for Single Of The Year, Musical Event Of The Year, and Music Video Of The Year, but the track went 0 for 3 in those categories. Dan + Shay picked up a win, though, for Vocal Duo Of The Year.

There were other crossover moments sprinkled throughout the event as well. Charlie Puth linked up with Gabby Barrett to perform their “I Hope” remix, which hit a new peak at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart this week. The evening also saw performances from Chris Stapleton and Maren Morris.

Watch Bieber and Dan + Shay’s performance above and check out some other highlights below.

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

There are a lot of concerns about the possibility of extraterrestrial life, both scientific and fun. One people like to ask, for example, is what pieces of culture we would choose to share with alien beings. When it comes to music, Chance The Rapper has declared his answer. On Twitter last night, he shared “the list of songs I will play for the aliens to get them to understand music and humanity,” and every track is by Michael Jackson (or The Jackson 5).

Chance tweeted out each song title individually, and the list includes “Human Nature,” “You Are Not Alone,” “Remember The Time,” “Dear Michael,” “Never Can Say Goodbye,” “Got To Be There,” “She’s Out Of My Life,” “Will You Be There,” “Stranger In Moscow,” “Man In The Mirror,” “Heal The World,” “Blame It On The Boogie,” “Heaven Can Wait,” “I’ll Be There,” “I Can’t Help It,” “Cry,” “Keep The Faith,” “Lady In My Life,” “Another Part Of Me,” “Earth Song,” and “Music & Me.”

In 2019, Chance cited Jackson as his philanthropic role model, telling Forbes, “The greatest of all time […] most philanthropic musician is Michael Joseph Jackson. I think he donated over $600 million to charities and more afterwards… The only person I can really think of off the top when I think of charity that’s a musician is Michael Jackson. That’s how I’ve always thought about it cause most of the people that I grew up listening to were hip-hop artists and I don’t really remember there being a lot of… ‘Ye gave back to the people, but it was in a very different way. It was always through his music. I can’t really think of anybody else.”

He also noted recently that one thing that scared him at one point in life, among others, was Jackson’s “Thriller.”

The MAC was one of the last college football conferences to return to the field last week, as the internet’s favorite conference came back to bring midweek football to the masses. The second week of MACtion brought about one of the wildest finishes of the college football season as Western Michigan hosted Toledo and trailed 38-28 with under a minute to play.

The Broncos would score a touchdown with 45 seconds left, but missed the extra point meaning they still trailed by four points. That meant they needed an onside kick and a touchdown, not just a field goal to tie. The first step in that was, unbelievably, achieved by a dribbling onside that got past a Toledo defender and was pretty spectacularly recovered by one of Western Michigan’s kickers.

On the ensuing drive, the Broncos would march down the field and inside the 10 with 20 seconds to play and rush to the line to set up for a spike — or so it seemed. Western Michigan then executed an incredible fake spike, as Toledo left the wide receiver on the left side of the field uncovered for a walk-in touchdown.

Toledo scrambling to get set on defense left the receiver wide open and the Broncos were ready to capitalize on it. It’s a rarity to see a fake spike, much less one that succeeds this well, but it was a tremendous way to end the night of football provided you weren’t a Rockets fan.

Young Dolph made his return to the hip-hop world earlier this year with his Rich Slave release. The project was the Memphis native’s first full-length release since his 2019 joint album, Dum and Dummer, with Key Glock. Looking to breathe new life into the album before the year ends, Dolph taps his fellow Memphis brethren to join him for a video for their “No Sense” collaboration. In the visual, the two rappers are at their flashiest thanks to the cars, high-end designer outfits, and overall lavish lifestyles that they portray in the video. However, through it all, Dolph and Glock are watched by undercover agents in unmarked vehicles who take pictures of the rappers as they go about their days.

The Paper Route rapper’s album arrived after he briefly retired earlier this year. Dolph told his followers on Instagram that he was “highly considering quitting music because I really wanna be with my kids 24/7.” Complex confirmed that rapper’s intention was to step away from the game to be more of a family man. However, the retirement was short-lived and he returned with the Rich Slave album, which was released with features from Megan Thee Stallion and G Herbo in addition to Key Glock.

Check out our review of Young Dolph’s Rich Slave album here.

You can watch the “No Sense” video above.

Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Stacey Abrams was one of the 2020 election’s big heroes, having been a major force in getting out the vote in Georgia — and, recount be damned, flipping the state blue. She then showed that she had range: She confidently weighed in on the raging Buffy the Vampire Slayer debate that had taken over parts of Twitter, in which fans of the deathless teen/young adult supernatural WB/UPN fave asked who was the better love vampiric boyfriend: Spike or Angel. But now it seems there’s a clear winner — and the answer wasn’t provided by Abrams.

It all started on Monday, the day after the presidential race was called for Joe Biden. One of the many people taking part in the debate summoned the former gubernatorial candidate, asking her to talk Buffy.

And talk Buffy Abrams did. “To be fair, Angel was the right boyfriend for Buffy coming into her power,” Abrams tweeted, but adding, “Spike was the right man to be with as she became the power.”

It’s a thoughtful and reasoned answer, from a thoughtful and reasonable person. But a couple days later, she was trumped by one of the show’s main supporting players.

As caught by Entertainment Weekly, Alyson Hannigan — aka Willow, the bookish friend who evolved into one of television’s first major and also entirely sympathetic out characters — had a fantastic answer: “Actually Buffy should have dated Willow.”

It’s not as thoughtful as Abrams’ answer, but brevity is the soul of wit. And it’s a great mic drop. Let’s see if anyone else — maybe Sarah Michelle Gellar herself, or maybe even Anthony Head — can come up with a better one.

(Via EW)

On Tuesday, the Xbox Series X arrived to the masses that pre-ordered Microsoft’s next-generation console and immediately gamers went to work trying to test out the power of the newest console.

For most, that meant diving into games that have been updated and optimized for next-gen systems, and the Series X delivers quite the gaming experience as our Ryan Nagelhout detailed in his review of the system. However, as is always the case, others decided to find out all manner of other things the Series X can do — and how to go viral with videos or pictures of making the system look like it’s on fire. As one account on Twitter showed, you can make it look like your Series X is smoking by blowing vape smoke into one side and the fans will blow it out the top and make it appear as if it is the system that’s on fire.

The video above was debunking photos people took trying to show the Series X overheating and smoking, but this was apparently a popular enough thing to lead the people at Xbox to issue a brief statement that you should not blow vape smoke into your console.

Even the social media folks at Xbox can’t believe they have to issue such a statement, but then again, we probably shouldn’t be surprised. On Thursday, we’ll get to see the PS5 in the hands of gamers and we’ll see what ridiculous things they try to do with it that makes Sony issue a statement on Twitter.

On Wednesday, troubling reports started to emerge out of Houston, as both Russell Westbrook and James Harden have apparently “expressed concern” about the direction of the franchise in the wake of their second-round playoff exit in Orlando and the resulting fallout that has seen both Mike D’Antoni and Daryl Morey leave the organization for new opportunities.

Naturally, the upheaval has their star duo wondering about whether the team still has the vision to capitalize on a championship window that could be closing faster than they think. Apparently, there wasn’t any lingering doubt about that on Westbrook’s part, as the former MVP has requested a trade, according to reports.

Soon after, additional information about the dynamics inside the locker room started to come to light as well, painting a stark portrait of discord among their ranks regarding poorly-defined roles and a pervasive lack of accountability, a culture which players have described as “problematic.” This applies to both current and former Rockets players and apparently has been going on for years.

According to the latest report from Kelly Iko, Sam Amick, and Shams Charania of The Athletic, Eric Gordon and P.J. Tucker have grown increasingly disillusioned with the way their roles have diminished the past couple of seasons, and those are just two examples of the way morale has evaporated.

Austin Rivers, who recently stated on “The Ringer NBA Show” that he would be declining his player option for 2020-21, also experienced a frustrating season. At times, Rivers was unhappy with his inconsistent playing time and utilization, sources said. In one instance, Rivers went on an expletive-laden tirade following a game where D’Antoni called for him to be substituted, only to change his mind and insert new signing DeMarre Carroll. In another instance, Rivers was barked at by Harden after the former MVP missed a free throw and blamed Rivers — who was standing up by the bench — for distracting him.

***

House was another player who wasn’t pleased with his usage and involvement in the offense and has verbally challenged D’Antoni, Harden, and Westbrook this season, sources said. His January outburst in a road win against the Hawks was the first instance where House publicly lost his cool in that manner but this wasn’t an isolated incident, sources said.

If these reports are accurate, in-fighting and widespread dysfunction appear to be at least partial culprits in the Rockets’ ongoing inability to reach their goal of winning an NBA championship and the source of their current unraveling. The front office, led by new general manager Rafael Stone, face a conundrum on how to move forward, which will in part depend on what they’re able to secure in a Westbrook trade. The landscape in Houston has already shifted drastically, and bigger changes could be on the horizon in the coming weeks as free agency approaches.

(The Athletic)

In another display of his wide-ranging artistry, Sturgill Simpson delivered his latest album, Cuttin’ Grass Vol. 1: The Butcher Shoppe Sessions in mid-October. The project saw the singer tap into the bluegrass world by flipping some of his past material for the new album. Simpson continued his promotion of the release by bringing his talents to The Late Show With Stephen Colbert to perform “Breakers Roar” on the show. The track originally appeared on his 2016 Grammy award-winning album, A Sailor’s Guide To Earth, and he shared the performance from Nashville’s legendary Station Inn venue with support from a full-fledged bluegrass band.

In addition to performing the song, Simpson also sat down with Colbert to talk about his relationship with the late John Prine, who partly owned The Butcher Shoppe recording studio and tragically died in April from coronavirus complications. He revealed in the discussion that he was using the studio for A Sailor’s Guide To Earth when he met Prine.

“We’d finished the record and I was in there mixing it one day, and I was pretty in the zone… and when I turned around, John was sitting in a chair in these plaid pants,” he said. “I kind of freaked out, you know when you come face to face with your hero. And he was like, ‘that was pretty good, do you want to go get some meatloaf?’ And any time I’d come to town, we’d go grab lunch.” Simpson also added that he became the owner of Prine’s 2008 Porsche 911 Turbo after he died and said “it’ll be something I treasure for the rest of my life.”

You can watch Simpson’s performance in the video above.

Cuttin’ Grass Vol. 1: The Butcher Shoppe Sessions is out 10/16 via High Top Mountain/Warner. Get it here.

Sturgill Simpson is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

As you’re probably aware by now, Timothy Olyphant appeared in The Mandalorian‘s recent Chapter 9 episode (fittingly titled as “The Marshal”). In doing so, he nearly overshadowed a huge nerd development: the surprise resurrection of Boba Fett. A lot has happened in our world since that episode aired, but there’s never a bad time to circle back to Olyphant’s many onscreen rodeos as a lawman. He’s certainly doing nothing to deter his reputation as a charismatic wearer of badges, given that the new Fargo season sees him doing his swaggery routine as well.

Olyphant is undeniably attracted to these roles, even though his career actually boasts a decent amount of variety. Back in the day, he danced on the other side of the law in Go; he did the romantic-lead thing in Catch and Release; and he menacingly cackled while stoking murder-vibes in A Perfect Getaway. He was also fan-freaking-tastic as a husband who adores his zombie wife in Netflix’s Santa Clarita Diet. Still, he can’t stop gripping that gun in the holster while strutting through America and the galaxy at large.

So, it’s time to revisit Olyphant’s Top Five lawman joints; these aren’t only ones, but they’re the best. For an example of a not-so-great entry, one need only go back to the unremarkable, Jerry Bruckheimer-produced Gone in Sixty Seconds (2000). This was a rare occasion where he played a completely generic cop. Granted, the character wasn’t drawn well, but Olyphant has trashed his own “mediocre” performance in the film. He was disappointed in his lack of effort, and we can at least thank that Nic Cage movie for doing one thing: inspiring Olyphant to do better (I reckon he did).

5. The Crazies (2010)

This horror remake accomplished much more, thematically, than the original George Romero flick. Yet given its heavy-genre leanings, it didn’t attract a huge audience, although critics mostly dug it. This also isn’t technically a zombie film, though a lot of the motifs that run through those movies remain the same. There’s a biohazard afoot that transforms people into irrational and nearly unstoppable killers, and Olyphant’s sheriff finds himself navigating the early stages of the outbreak while sh*t gets real with the military as martial law descends. Granted, it’s a scary watch, but it bypasses the usual horror tropes and manages to be somewhat cerebral. And of course, there’s a leading turn by a guy who’d go on to star in a comedic zombie series on Netflix.

Olyphant’s convincing as a small-town cop, and the project arrived at an interesting point in his career: a few years after Deadwood ended as an HBO TV series but right before Justified launched on FX. I certainly would advise anyone who’s an Olyphant-lawman completist to put this film on their list, but it’s not as wonderful as his other badge-filled turns for a few reasons: (1) This is not the typical Olyphant lawman who’s confidently equipped to deal with every situation, so he’s not as satisfying to witness if you’re looking for his usual mythical bent; (2) Olyphant does not wear a hat here, and I’m not sorry to say that, yes, that matters!

4. Fargo (2020)

This is where things get tricky, fast, because it feels somewhat criminal to rank five wonderful Olyphant performances that are all worthy of appreciation. How lucky are we, really, to have this guy embracing various incarnations of the way that he knows people love to see him most? He’s a charming rascal, and he knows it. Let’s be honest, I’d even watch him don sheriff-y attire and simply make oatmeal in a slow cooker (something that he actually does in real life, probably in plainclothes) for a full season. An Olyphant foodie hour, as long he wears a hat, would be my pandemic-viewing jam, so there’s a nice idea for HBO Max’s World of Calm Season 2. With that said, Olyphant’s Fargo appearance doesn’t reel me in quite as much as I hoped that it would.

Don’t get me wrong. I love where Deafy got his nickname and the whole kicking-in-the-door move and even the endearing carrot-stick offering, but this recurring role doesn’t allow the Olyphant quality to shine. He’s part of an ensemble of stellar actors playing kooky roles with weird-ass names, and against that jumbled backdrop, his Stetson-wearing presence doesn’t resonate with its usual gravity. To me, Fargo Season 4 is where the understated performances — like that of Chris Rock as a crime boss — are the ones that stand out. Having Olyphant around is a fine bonus, of course.

3. The Mandalorian (2020)

Now we’re cooking. What an absolute treat “The Marshal” episode turned out to be on Disney+. Will we see Cobb Vanth again? There’s no telling, and I never anticipated seeing Olyphant doing a Star Wars gig, but here he is, nerding out and looking cool at the same time. Not even that restrictive armor could keep his personality and sardonic wit from shining through. Furthermore, it’s the second half of a one-two punch on the Olyphantastic front (in 2020) for those who love to see this guy in his trademark mode. And he did so in a role that tweaked Star Wars canon and helped to put Boba Fett back in the equation. Who would have thought that was possible? Furthermore, Jon Favreau knew who to call when he needed a marshal-type.

Sure, Cobb (as portrayed by Olyphant) is a bit of a cocky a-hole by Star Wars standards, but boy, is he likeable. And it was a blast to watch him do his part while defeating a Krayt Dragon in a truly thrilling action scene that felt Dune-esque (for the Sarlaac-turned-sandworm factor). For a moment, I even forgot all about Pedro Pascal over there, underneath his Mando armor. It’s a good thing that Cobb’s probably out of the occasion now, so they don’t have to rename The Mandalorian as The Space Raylan Show.

2. Deadwood (2004-2016 and 2019)

C*cksuckers, unite for this one. David Milch’s masterfully profane HBO western still holds up, throughout the three TV seasons (that managed to include a fine episode about… kidney stones? yes) and one reunion movie full of Shakespearean dialogue and catching up with beloved figures. It’s a testament to Olyphant’s own indispensable performance (and his confidence in the role) that he was sure glad that he wasn’t the “a-hole” to turn down a return to the magic. So, we got a revisiting of the breakout part that make him well-known for wearing a hat on the wild frontier.

From the first-season episode of Seth Bullock falling to his knees while witnessing the death of Wild Bill Hickok to Bullock’s balance of contempt-respect for his frenemy, Al Swearengen, Olyphant excelled at the upholding of honor and the settling of scores. The particular gathering of ensemble personalities here, as well, did not distract from Bullock as the central beacon of the show. As Deadwood’s appointed sheriff (who thought he’d left those days behind), Bullock frequently seethed with thinly-cloaked rage after picking up the badge again. That’s quite unlike Olyphant, who almost seems addicted to law enforcement roles, and even in 2020, he’s sure enjoying taking those rides.

1. Justified (2010-2015, Eternity)

Raylan Givens: the role that Timothy Olyphant was born to play. Elmore Leonard, who created the character, raved about how the show’s spin on his stories (and the leading man) blew him away. That Stetson hat, too, got tweaked as an Olyphant entry, upgraded from a “Dallas Businessman’s Special” in Leonard’s prose. And the headgear of the TV show turned out to be instrumental: you could always tell when Raylan went undercover because he’d go hatless. It was funny and fitting and fed into the mythical character who left a corrupt dentist (from the “Long In The Tooth” bottle-ish episode) gasping to see his hero-nemesis coming to arrest him.

Olyphant infused Raylan with all the swagger that was fit to bloody the nose of Appalachia. It’s telling, too, how Raylan’s extralegal ways (and fried-chicken-temptation antics) managed to age well, even in a time when many are circling back to point fingers at cop shows. Yet Raylan never wielded his power against anyone who didn’t have it coming. Basically, he took down Nazis and those who refused to pick on people their own size. And even though he felt compelled to honor his dynamic with Boyd Crowder by paying the guy an in-person visit in the series finale, Raylan’s moral code never strayed from what was inherently good. Don’t tell him that, though. Like Olyphant, Raylan’s chaos-filled manner of self-deprecation remains the stuff of legends.