Category: Trending

A primary use for Britney Spears’ Instagram these days, as it has been for some time, is for the singer to share videos of herself dancing. Now, she’s taking things to a more vertical level, as she showed off her new stripper pole in a video shared yesterday (August 13).

The clip is set to Nine Inch Nails’ “Closer” and in it, Spears wears a revealing animal-print bikini as she works the pole (an X-Pole, in case you were wondering). Spears drops it low, spins around, and otherwise makes use of her new implement. She captioned the post, “Got this pole two days ago and last night was my first time on it !!!”

Meanwhile, the biggest Spears story of the past month or so seems to have died down: Spears had an altercation with NBA star Victor Wembanyama’s security guard, but there haven’t been any updates about the situation lately. Since then, Spears linked up with will.i.am for a new song, “Mind Your Business.” will.i.am, by the way, believes Spears is sitting on a “plethora” of unreleased music.

In July, she also announced her long-awaited new memoir, The Woman In Me. A statement from the publisher explains, “In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice — her truth — was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman In Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey — and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history. Written with remarkable candor and humor, Spears’s groundbreaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love — and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.”

The Philadelphia 76ers ended trade talks for James Harden over the weekend, and now, Harden has responded in a big way. In a video that began circulating on the internet on Monday morning of Harden at his basketball camp in China, Harden twice called Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey a “liar” and vowed that he will “never be part of an organization that he’s a part of.”

While a report indicated that the years-long relationship between Morey and Harden was “fractured” earlier this offseason, this is nonetheless a stunning escalation by Harden, who has a reputation for trying to force a team’s hand when he wants out. This appears to be a reference to Harden’s decision to take less money on a shorter deal in free agency last offseason to let the Sixers have a bit more financial flexibility to build a team around Harden and Joel Embiid. Reports at the time said that some questioned if Harden had a handshake agreement on a future contract, one that would have compensated him for his sacrifice while simultaneously being illegal under the rules of the CBA. The team did not face any sort of penalty for that, but did lose a pair of second-round NBA Draft picks after it was determined they discussed deals with P.J. Tucker and Danuel House before they were permitted.

Harden requested a trade at the start of the offseason after opting into the final year of his contract, and while reports indicated Philadelphia’s front office would work to help him find a new destination, it came with one major catch: Morey publicly said the team would not just trade Harden if it came at the expense of their ability to win a championship. Their inability to find a deal that would make that happen — primarily with the Los Angeles Clippers, which was Harden’s reported preferred landing spot – meant that the team ended trade conversations over the weekend, even if it meant that it set up what Adrian Wojnarowski called an “uncomfortable situation” entering training camp.

In June, Ariana Grande poked fun at herself for all of the makeup phases she embarrassingly participated in a lighthearted TikTok video. However, there is one beauty trend she is quite proud of, her custom fragrance lines. With nearly ten scents tied to her likeness, Grande is adding another perfume to her arsenal.

Her new eu da parfum, Cloud Pink, is available online, but it isn’t set to float onto the shelves of an Ulta Beauty store near you until next week. To promote the airy smell, Grande teamed up with visual artist Zoey Grossman to capture the essence of the product for the whimsical new commercial.

As fans await her musical return, Grande is keeping herself busy with her latest business endeavor. In a statement with PR Newswire, Grande shared her excitement for the scent’s release, which marks the long-awaited follow-up to her 2018 perfume Cloud.

“Cloud is a fragrance that will always be so close to my heart, and I thank my fans for showing it so much overwhelming love all of these years. Developing a new fragrance under this fan-favorite franchise was daunting at first, but I really do think that we’ve created the perfect sister scent to the original Cloud,” said Grande.

Noreen Dodge, the Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer of LUXE Brands, the company that partnered with Grande for the scent, shared the same feelings.

“Cloud Pink is an evolution of the story. Working with an artist like Ariana, she challenges her partners to re-imagine the convergence of scent, design, and storytelling, always with the intent to delight her fans. It is this forward-thinking creativity and craftsmanship that continues to redefine the customer’s experience,” said Dodge.

Ariana Grande’s Cloud Pink fragrance is exclusively on Ulta Beauty’s website starting today (August 13). The scent will be made available in starts starting on August 20. Find more information here.

Barbie has been in most theaters around the world for less than a month, but it’s already made beyond bank. In the last week the movie that triggered Ben Shapiro has broken not one but two box office records for its director/co-writer Greta Gerwig, with plenty of money gobbling left to go.

As per Deadline, last Tuesday Barbie passed a big milestone: It outgrossed Frozen II, which four years ago Hoovered up $477.4 million, at the North American box office. Why is that such an accomplishment (beyond it being a ton of money, that is)? Because Frozen II was co-directed by a woman, Jennifer Lee. And because before Barbie came around, Frozen II was the highest-ever-grossing film on the continent. In other words, Barbie is now the highest grossing film ever directed by a woman in America and Canada.

What it isn’t, at least not yet, is the highest grossing film ever directed by a woman globally. That honor still goes to Frozen II, which made $1.4 billion worldwide back in 2019 and 2020. That said, Barbie still managed to break another record: This weekend, it sailed past Captain Marvel’s $1.3 billion, which was co-directed by Anna Boden, and which was the highest grossing live-action movie with a female director credit.

In summary, Barbie — which added another $33 million to its North American total, crossing the $500 million mark, and which is encouraging those living in nation’s that have banned it to do some traveling — is now the highest grossing film ever directed by a woman domestically and the highest-grossing live-action film ever directed by a woman globally. So congrats to Greta Gerwig and take that, Ted Cruz.

(Via Deadline)

Ever since Nike took over the NBA’s jersey manufacturing, teams have been able to unveil new uniform sets for each season, with ever-changing City and Statement edition uniforms going alongside their typical home and away models.

Not every uniform addition has been a hit, but they have allowed teams to get creative and try some new things. Most of them try to pay tribute to something their city or state is known for, offering a little extra local flair to their jersey sets. With the 2023-24 season steadily approaching, we’re starting to get jersey unveilings for this upcoming season, with the Minnesota Timberwolves holding an event on Sunday to show off their new City Edition uniforms befitting of the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

The trim features “Land of 10,000 Lakes” and they gradient from light blue to dark blue at the top is interesting. We’ll have to see if the Wolves also add a lake-themed court to go with those jerseys as some teams do, as the matching court often plays a role in whether a uniform set looks right when in play or not. As always, the most important thing is that fans in Minnesota dig the lake theme, not those of us on the outside nationally, and we’ll see if these become a hit in Minneapolis this coming year.

In July, in an attempt to find a reasonable compromise with concertgoers, Drake declared that during his It’s A Blur Tour, he would allow fans to throw things on stage. However, the only acceptable items were bras. For weeks fans obliged his narrow request, and for one large-chested woman, it has reportedly landed her an offer from Playboy. But on Saturday, August 12, during night one of his performances at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, Drake called for a temporary cease-fire of unmentionables.

After attendees began tossing their garments on stage, instead of basking in the articles of clothing, Drake walked over to brush them off the stage with his foot. He then revealed that he couldn’t practice one of his favorite tour traditions because there was a special guest in the house. “I can’t talk about titties tonight in LA because my son (Adonis) is at the show for the first time ever,” Drake instructed the crowd. “So, we’re going to keep this real PG tonight. Y’all, keep your bras on.”

Although the decision may have been hard for Drake to cope with, it was ultimately the right call. Drake himself is a certified lover boy, but his adorable five-year-old, the muse for several of Drake’s tattoos, shouldn’t be exposed to that aspect of life on tour just yet. Plenty of tour dates remain; one tame night won’t hurt.

Wherever it travels, Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour is the hottest ticket in town. On Friday, August 11, ahead of her first night of shows in Atlanta, Georgia, city officials declared the date an official holiday, “Beyoncé Day.” But that wasn’t the only thing city natives did to show their love for Beyoncé.

On Saturday, August 12, during night two of her Renaissance World Tour, concertgoers proved they were the singer’s most devoted fans by dethroning Washington, DC, of their crown of the “Eerbody On Mute War” winners. The contest started as a fun crowd engagement moment to see who could best sing along to the lyrics to “Energy,” namely, “Look around / Everybody on mute.” It’s turned into a battle of the regional Beyhives.

Once it was time for the Mercedes-Benz Stadium to go silent, they flawlessly hit their mark, and Beyoncé gleefully declared the Atlanta audience as the new “Eerbody On Mute” challenge winners.

Earlier in the show, Beyoncé opened up to the sold-out stadium about what the tour means to her. “This is the gratitude tour,” she said. “This show is all about joy. I hope y’all feel a lot of joy. When I get up on this stage and see y’all, that’s what I feel. Y’all look beautiful tonight.”

“This is the gratitude tour. This show is all about joy. I hope y’all feel a lot of joy. When I get up on this stage and see y’all that’s what I feel. Y’all look beautiful tonight.” – Beyoncé in Atlanta#RENAISSANCEWorldTour pic.twitter.com/j7hbsonrVL

— 𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚔 (@arikbeyhive) August 13, 2023

Donald Trump’s a little busy these days. He’s running for president for a third time. Speaking of threes, he has that many federal indictments, with a fourth almost certainly in the mail. It’s understandable that he’d neglect some things. For example, his late wife Ivana’s grave isn’t doing so hot these days.

According to The Daily Mail, the modest site — located on, of all places, the 506-acre grounds of his Bedminster, New Jersey golf course — honoring his first wife, who died last summer after a fatal fall down the stairs, are even sadder a year on than they were when first discovered. Pictures show the tiny stone plaque overrun with grass. One could easily miss it if one wasn’t looking.

When the grave was discovered last July, it took a small amount of snooping to suss out the bizarre-even-for-him reasons for why he buried his late ex-wife on a freakin’ golf course. In New Jersey, there is no minimum number of bodies required to designate a plot of land as a cemetery. And if cemeteries are exempt from all taxes, rates, and assessments.

So did Donald Trump really bury his first wife on a golf course to save a few bucks? And did he then forget to tell a groundskeeper to make sure her grave didn’t look like crap? In other news, this guy’s still incredibly popular with GOP voters.

You can see what he did to Ivana’s beautiful grave site over at The Daily Mail.

Up to this point, SZA has treated fans to a handful of videos from her chart-topping album, SOS, including “Kill Bill,” “Shirt,” “I Hate You,” and bonus track “PSA,” However, the forthcoming cinematic short film for her record, “Snooze” is promising to be the most steamy to date.

In an NSFW behind-the-scenes clip shared on her official Instagram page, SZA put on a glorious display of her favorite asset: her purse-like derrière. As SZA sensually dances for her robot lover, she shows her bootylicious backside.

SZA loves to gush about her enhanced, hefty bottom. During an interview with Sylvia Obell for Elle, she said, “I treat my butt like a purse. It’s just there to enhance whatever else. And that’s why I paid for it because it works all by itself. I always wanted a really fat ass with less gym time. I didn’t succumb to industry pressure. I succumbed to my own eyes in the mirror and being like, ‘No, I need some more ass.’”

SZA hasn’t shared when fans should expect the video for “Snooze” to drop, but based on the second clip uploaded to her profile, she also has another one for an unreleased track on the way.

Lil Durk’s Sorry For The Drought Tour hasn’t been the triumph he intended it to be. Due to health concerns, the rapper reportedly decided to scale back his massive performance schedule in July, which resulted in several canceled stops across the country. But he was sure to keep his hometown of Chicago, Illinois, on the roster for a ceremonious homecoming show ahead of the release of Almost Healed Deluxe. Alas, his return to the Windy City on Saturday, August 12, ended in mayhem.

According to TMZ, Lil Durk’s concert, held at the United Center, was allegedly cut short due to a false report of an active shooter. The outlet claims that local authorities urged immediate evacuation. But as fans began to flee from the ground level of the arena, panic began to spread throughout the entire facility.

In video clips captured by concertgoers, concertgoers ran out in fear of the situation. Others, though, began to loot the merchandise stands before making their way to the nearest exit.

After the concert, Lil Durk took to Instagram to share a message about the show. Although he did not address the active shooter allegations, he let fans know he wasn’t upset with the looters. “Don’t believe the hype. We are bigger than big. Thank you, Chicago. Till next time. And who all stole the merchandise, tag me so I can repost y’all crazy ass,” wrote Durk.