Category: Trending

Pigs are cute. Well, piglets are cute, but they usually don’t stay those tiny little snorting things very long. That is unless you get a mini pig and name it something majestic like Merlin. (I would’ve gone with Hamlet McBacon, but no one asked me.)

Mina Alali, a TikTok user from California, has been going viral on the internet for her relationship with Merlin, her miniature pig. Of course, there are plenty of folks out there with pigs—mini pigs, medium pigs, pigs that weigh hundreds of pounds and live in a barn with a spider named Charlotte. But not everyone carries their pig around on adventures like it’s their child.

Alali’s videos of her sweet interactions with her little pig have gotten a lot of people wanting their own piggy, but training Merlin wasn’t always easy. According to Yahoo Finance, the 25-year-old told SWNS that she has wanted a pig her whole life and finding Merlin was a “dream come true,” but she wasn’t expecting how challenging it would be to train him. If you’ve never been around pigs, then you may not know that they squeal—a lot—and unless you’re living on an actual farm, that could be a problem.

Alali told SWNS that she had to teach Merlin how to be calm when he was being picked up or else he would scream. Thankfully, since then the little piggy has taken to people and enjoys being handled. “It’s definitely an obstacle sometimes…You have to dedicate as much time and love and affection to [the pig], as you would a toddler,” she explained to SWNS. The internet is rejoicing that she didn’t give up on Merlin because her videos are so stinking cute.

@mina.alali

Replying to @alysa.evans Cried making this🥲 #merlinthepig #mina #adoption #pigsoftiktok #pig #piggy #fyp #xyzbca

And while this particular pig won’t become huge since he’s a mini Vietnamese pot-bellied pig, he will still get up to about 80 pounds once he’s fully grown. But Merlin is ahead of the crowd when it comes to smarts because he can actually communicate with his mom using electronic buttons.

@mina.alali

Finally feel appreciated around this place 🥹 #mydogtalks #merlinthepig #mina #pigsoftiktok #manners #thankyou #piggy #pig #fyp #xyzbca

Seriously, Merlin is making me want a pig, because how is he smarter than my dog, who would probably just eat the buttons instead of pressing them? But the adventures don’t stop there. Alali also takes her furry little child to grab morning coffee.

@mina.alali

still waiting on free Starbucks 😒 #merlinthepig #mina #pigsoftiktok #pig #piggy #FastTwitchContest #fyp #xyzbca

I mean, who doesn’t want to see a miniature pot-bellied pig grabbing Starbucks with his mom? The baristas certainly seemed entertained and can you blame them? By the end of this Merlin is going to be a celebrity selling his own skin care line to the masses because he is beyond cute and has demonstrated that he even has manners.

While Merlin is certainly adorable and has amassed more than 1.8 million followers on TikTok with his mom, you probably still shouldn’t run out and get a pig. Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs can weigh anywhere between 70 to 175 pounds and live up to 20 years, so owning your own version of Merlin is a commitment.

In the meantime, you can head on over to Alali and Merlin’s TikTok page and soak up all the pig content you want.

Daniel Caesar is back with a seductive new song. On his latest, “Do You Like Me,” Caesar woos a lady, over a Raphael Saadiq-produced track, asking if she shares the same affections for him.

“Do you like the way I talk to you? / Do I titillate your mind? / Gotta say I like your attitude / And I’d love to make you mine / But I gotta know,” he sings on the song’s chorus.

In a statement accompanied by the song’s release, Caesar described “Do You Like Me” as “A song about a woman I respect deeply.. 90 degrees of a love triangle.”

Caesar discussed his upcoming album a year ago in an interview with Complex. During the interview, he revealed that the upcoming album will be mostly comprised of him, and feature very few collaborations.

“I’m not much of a ‘go outside and be social’ type of person and that was before the quarantine,” Caesar said. “So working on the album post-quarantine, you’re not really interacting with anybody else…But I have met a few people who have made me excited about making things again.”

We don’t know much else about Caesar’s upcoming album, but in the meantime, you can check out “Do You Like Me” above.

Flo Milli returns with an impeccable remix of her song “Conceited” which now has new features from Lola Brooke and Maiya The Don.

“Milli got millis / ‘Cause Milli got hits,” she opens the song before breaking the beat to introduce the other girls.

“Remember that when you see this motherf*cking face,” Milli adds during the talking break. “Get used to both of these faces, b*tch / ‘Cause we ain’t going no motherf*cking where b*tch.”

The three women hype each other up in the studio, right as the song’s remix continues. Brooke’s verse brings the heavy-hitting vibes, and the red lighting in the video reflects that. Maiya The Don equally carries the track, giving her own spin on Milli’s lyrics.

Still, the updated remix version keeps the original hit’s chorus, as the girls repeat “Feeling myself / I’m conceited” — giving some seriously powerful energy in the process.

About two weeks ago, Brooke performed at Flo Milli’s Los Angeles concert, according to a TikTok video of her singing her own “Don’t Play With It.” Considering the duo now have also jumped on a track together, it seems their friendship is close in all aspects.

Listen to Flo Milli’s new “Conceited” remix with Lola Brooke and Maiya The Don above.

After dropping “I Can’t Go Back To The Way It Was (Intro),” the opening track to his upcoming debut album, The First Time, The Kid Laroi has shared the album’s first single. On the hotly-anticipated “Love Again,” The Kid Laroi questions if the love he once shared in a past relationship ever really ended.

Driven by a soft, acoustic guitar, The Kid Laroi delivers his signature raspy vocals, as he questions whether or not a past love will return.

“Can we find love again? / Is this time the end? / Tell me, how many more tears will drop / ‘Til you hit me with ‘Can we talk?’ / And try love again / Can we find love again?,” he sings on the song’s chorus.

In the song’s accompanying visual, The Kid Laroi is seen driving around the city, with a robot girlfriend. He humanizes the robot, as they are seen sharing intimate moments, engaging in arguments, and he eventually drives the woman into another man’s arms.

He can’t help but feel sad, as he sits in his living room, sifting through polaroids, crowded by empty pizza boxes.

You can check out the video for “Love Again” above.

The First Time is out later this year via Columbia Records. You can pre-save it here.

Zach Bryan and Maggie Rogers dropped their new collab, “Dawns,” today. The rising country star co-wrote the heartbreaking song with Rogers, detailing every emotion that comes with love and loss — as the themes overlap in the verses.

With a minimal acoustic instrumental and Bryan’s gritty vocals, it elevates the tenseness at the song’s start.

“All is fair in love and war / So what the hell are we even fighting for? / I’m on your front porch begging for my dawns back / Give my goddamn records and my clothes back,” the two duet. “‘Cause everything that dies makes its way on back / I lost her last July in a heart attack / I need one small victory.”

However, the pace soon picks up when Rogers’ presence offers a subtle-but-stunning backing presence.

She also gets her own solo moment to shine on the track as it eventually slows back down. “It just dawned on me / Life is as fleeting as the passing dawn / And I should have told him twice,” she sings in one of the pre-chorus takes. It showcases just as perfectly she fits on this one.

Listen to Zach Bryan and Maggie Rogers’ new song “Dawns” above.

Zach Bryan is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

If there’s something (of the many things) Yeonjun, Soobin, Beomgyu, Taehyun and Huening Kai are good at, it’s leading us into tempation. (Amen.)

TXT, whose name is short for TOMORROW X TOGETHER, returns today (January 27) with their twelfth EP, A Name Chapter: Temptation. The EP marks the first of three chapters for the HYBE boy group’s new music storytelling series.

“It tells the story of youths who decide to embark on a long journey for their future but is swayed by the temptation in front of them,” Soobin explained in a press conference held yesterday, according to a report from Korea Herald. “All the tracks are connected by the central theme. If you listen to the tracks in order, you will be able to feel the emotional changes of the boy who feels happy after falling for the immediate temptation but soon realizes the reality and sets off on his own path.”

The lead single, “Sugar Rush Ride,” is a metaphorical alternative pop dance track that tells the story of how it feels to be shaken by the devil. You can hear in the breakdown of the chorus where the members whisper-sing “The devil said / ‘Gimme gimme more / Come here more / let’s play more.”

The visual component, on the other hand, embraces the dark fantasy as members are seen running through various open fields from the figurative form of temptation, as scenes of alluring and seductive close ups of the members flash in between.

“Sing Rush Ride” was produced by Slow Rabbit, and gives credit to Sofia Kay, Supreme Boi, Moa “Cazzi Opeia” Carlebecker, “hitman” bang, Salem Ilese, Krysta Youngs, Myah Marie Langston, and OLLIPOP.

Check out th full tracklist of A Name Chapter: Temptation below.

1. “Devil by the Window”
2. “Sugar Rush Ride”
3. “Happy Fools (Featuring Coi Leray)”
4. “Tinnitus (Wanna Be a Rock)”
5. “Farewell, Neverland.”

Swifties have a lot to celebrate today! Taylor Swift has finally dropped the long-awaited music video for “Lavender Haze,” the opening track for her recent album, Midnights.

While Swift released two prior videos from this current era, fans had been eager for what they suspected was the visuals for this song — after spotting some clips with purple hues in the album’s teaser trailer.

As it turns out, they were correct on the theories. The “Lavender Haze” video finds Swift with co-star Laith Ashley, as they party as a pretend couple with their closest friends. In an incredibly psychedelic twist, she soon discovers that she floated into outer space.

However, the actual backstory behind the song is about her longtime, real-life partner, actor Joe Alwyn.

“I happened upon the phrase ‘Lavender Haze’ when I was watching Mad Men and I looked it up because I thought it sounded cool, and it turns out that it was a common phrase that was used in the ’50s where they would just describe being in love,” Swift shared in a previous Instagram video about the song. “Like, If you were in the ‘Lavender Haze,’ that meant you were in that all-encompassing love glow, and I thought that was really beautiful.”

“I guess theoretically when you’re in the ‘Lavender Haze,’ you’ll do anything to stay there and not let people bring you down off of that cloud,” she added. “And I think a lot of people have to deal with this now — not just, like, quote-unquote public figures — because we live in the era of social media and if the world finds out that you’re in love with somebody, they’re gonna weigh in on it.”

Watch Taylor Swift’s new music video for “Lavender Haze” above.

Rosalía is back with some new music. On her newest single, “LLYLM,” she seeks sweet nothings from a lover, even if she knows he’s not being sincere in his words.

She delivers her soft-tinged vocals over a punchy, hand-clapping track.

“I don’t need the honesty/ Lie like you love me / lie like you love me,” she sings on the song’s chorus.

“LLYLM” is sung with Spanish verses, with the chorus in English. She has been teasing the song on TikTok over the course of the past week, and although she only released her critically-acclaimed third album, Motomami last March, it seems like Rosalía’s gearing up for a new era.

This makes sense, as she revealed last December in an interview with Rolling Stone that she wants to put out music on her own terms, regardless of how short or long of a time it’s been between albums.

“I’d never want to put out records with a sense of urgency, or with the pressure of ‘Oh, it’s been X years,’ ” she said. “I don’t think I’m going to be that type of artist. I think I’m always going to make music when I feel like I have something to say.”

Check out “LLYLM” above.

One night after coming up just short in a hard-fought game in Philadelphia, the Nets were back in Brooklyn to host the Detroit Pistons, losers of four straight, on Thursday night.

Brooklyn was once again without Kevin Durant as he recovers from an MCL sprain, but also didn’t have Seth Curry available due to right knee soreness and saw T.J. Warren and Ben Simmons each leave the game with knee issues of their own. Warren suffered a knee contusion, while Simmons left in the third with knee soreness, a distinction that head coach Jacque Vaughn made sure to be very clear about in his postgame press conference.

Vaughn was asked about this being a potential schedule loss on the second night of a back-to-back and pushed back very hard on that being anything he’d ever consider, noting that every team plays the same number of games and they all face back-to-backs during the season — while also saying in his day there were times he’d play four in five nights, something the league has gotten rid of. He was also asked specifically about Simmons, as this wasn’t the first back-to-back he left early due to soreness, and whether he can be relied on in the future to be on the court in back-to-backs. Vaughn’s answer was eyebrow raising to say the least.

“The goal is, in my eyes, for everyone to play every game, and to do what’s necessary to play every game,” Vaughn said. “There’s certain amount of minutes that each individual played in Philly, some played equally tonight, so the preparation that it takes going into that, you just have to give credit to the guys who were prepared to play, ready to play, did what was necessary to get their bodies ready to play.”

As a former player, Vaughn is keenly aware of the demands of the NBA schedule, but also doesn’t seem particularly sympathetic (or empathetic) to guys needing days off. This all comes at a time when the load management concept is getting questioned again, with another former player, Richard Jefferson, noting on Thursday how he finds a lot of it ridiculous considering more stars are sitting out more games despite vastly superior training staffs and treatment options available to them.

For the Nets, they had Kyrie Irving and Nic Claxton each log big minutes on the back-to-back — Irving with 76 minutes and Claxton with 71 in the two games — while Simmons played a combined 49. For Vaughn, it seems some frustration with a lack of availability, particularly when he was active and not on the pregame injury report, is starting to creep up with Simmons and this seemed like his effort at public motivation for Simmons and potentially others to be more committed to being mentally and physically ready each night.

How Simmons responds to this remains to be seen, as tough love has not always been a successful motivational tool with the former All-Star, but right now his production level and availability are both leaving something to be desired in Brooklyn as they try to navigate life without KD and Jacque Vaughn appears ready to take a more direct approach.

Maisie Peters is back with her first new song of 2023, “Body Better.” The emotional track finds Peters wondering whether she can measure up to an ex-partner’s ideals and societal beauty standards. Despite the powerful lyricism, it doesn’t drag the song down — as it maintains an upbeat pop instrumental and a super catchy chorus.

“Were you sorry like you weren’t at the time?” Peters questions. “Loving you was easy / That’s why it hurts now / The worst way to love somebody is to watch them love somebody else.”

It also serves as the lead single from her eventual sophomore album.

“’Body Better’ is one of the most honest songs I’ve ever released, and definitely the most personal,” she shared in a statement. “I wrote it after a breakup and it deals with the ugly things you think to yourself in the aftermath, when you’re painstakingly going through everything small thing you did and were and wondering what you could have changed. It’s a song about insecurity and vulnerability, about giving a lot of yourself away to someone who decides they don’t want it anymore, and knowing where to go from there.”

Next week, she’ll be joining Ed Sheeran on the road for his Mathematics tour across New Zealand, Australia, and North America. Peters will also play her own headlining tour in Europe.

Listen to Maisie Peters’ “Body Better” above.

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