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Last night, the Television Academy announced that this year’s Super Bowl halftime performance, which took place this past February and featured Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, 50 Cent, Mary J. Blige, And Kendrick Lamar, had won three Creative Arts Emmy awards.

On social media, the Academy revealed that the performance won the awards for Outstanding Variety Special (Live), Outstanding Production Design for a Variety Special, and Outstanding Music Direction.

This year’s Super Bowl was an iconic moment for hip-hop, largely for West Coast hip-hop. In a July interview with Apple Music 1, Blige sat down to reflect on the monumental performance.

“I don’t even have the words to explain how full and how huge of an accomplishment that was,” Blige said. “I just felt so strong. And I felt like, first of all, grateful to have been asked, but I definitely felt like I earned that moment,” Blige remarked. “So when it was my turn, I just showed the world who I was. If you’d never seen me or you never met me or you never went to any of my shows, you know exactly who I am after the Super Bowl. I just couldn’t wait to hit the Mary bopping. I just couldn’t wait to just be myself and do what I do in front of that audience. That was the world, that was a big deal. I was so grateful.”

Mary J. Blige is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

If you love nothing more than prequel shows to fantasy juggernauts, then you’re in luck. Right now, HBO and Amazon are duking it out. The former has House of the Dragon, which brings viewers back to the world of Game of Thrones. The latter has The Rings of Power, set thousands of years before the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings (though its brass is insisting it’s no prequel). In the lead-up to their premieres, there was much anxiety over whether people would tune in, much less enjoy them. Then Dragon scored ratings so high they all but crashed HBO Max. Now Amazon is claiming a ton of people also fired up the one about elves and orcs.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Amazon is claiming that on its first day of release, starting Thursday night, The Rings of Power was watched by 25 million people worldwide — the largest audience they’ve ever received. It’s the first time the company has released stats about their streamer, which — as with Netflix, who only reports on viewership when it’s allegedly huge — makes it all a bit suspect. The news was short on details, as THR reports:

As for context, there’s little to go on: Prime Video reps declined to say whether that’s an average viewership worldwide on day one, the number of people who watched at least a few minutes of the series, or something else. Nor is there any indication of how much bigger The Rings of Power was than the previous record holder on Prime Video (or what that show was).

THR also pointed out that the claim might not be quite as impressive as it sounds:

Prime Video says the series launched in some 240 territories worldwide. Dividing 25 million by that number would average out to a little more than 104,000 viewers per territory (though certainly significantly higher than that in more populous countries). A rosier spin would be to note that Amazon has about 200 million Prime members worldwide who have access to Prime Video streaming. That would mean one in eight Prime members checked out The Rings of Power on its first day.

Of course, the real test will come when Amazon drops more episodes of their super pricey new Tolkien show. Perhaps it will wind up like House of the Dragon, which had a killer debut and an even more-watched second episode, suggesting that its success was no fluke.

(Via THR)

Is Donald Trump running for president again? When he appeared at a rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Saturday night, he was ostensibly there to prop up two GOP candidates sagging in the polls: Doug Mastriano, who’s running for governor, and Dr. Mehmet Oz, who’s running for Congress. But as is his wont, he mostly spoke about himself, his many enemies, and his many strange thoughts on things like electric cars, Ukraine, and Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman, whom he baselessly accused of taking drugs.

Trump’s speech went on for two grueling hours. Much of it was him playing the hits. But he had some fresh material. For one thing, it was his first rally since the FBI searched the resort in which he now resides. Though Trump tried to get ahead of the news, painting himself yet again as a victim, it’s become increasingly clear that he may have committed some serious crimes. He may even wind up finally getting his comeuppance. So he did what he does best: He made dubious, out-of-nowhere claims, including about the feds searching his son Barron’s room.

“They rifled through the First Lady’s closet drawers and everything else,” a slurry Trump told the crowd, “and even did a deep and ugly search of the room of my 16-year-old son, leaving everything they touched in far different condition than it was when they started.” He then accused the FBI and the Justice Department of becoming “vicious monsters, controlled by radical left scoundrels, lawyers, and the media, who tell them what to do” — he then ominously pointed to the reporters in the back — “and when to do it.”

Was Trump really accusing the FBI of planting evidence or simply being sloppy? Who can tell with a guy who was able to goad his supporters into an old fashioned “lock her up!” chant even as he himself may be heading for the slammer.

Later he got the same crowd to boo aid to Ukraine during the Russian invasion.

He also called COVID-19 “China dust” for some reason.

And he claimed “weirdo” Mark Zuckerberg visited him at the White House…last week.

He ranted about electric cars.

Oh, and he’s still calling Elizabeth Warren “Pocahantas.”

And he’s still ranting about windmills.

It went on for two whole hours. At one point “adderall” was trending.

Perhaps Trump’s latest epic speech will give a boost to Mastriano, who attended the Jan. 6 Capital protests, and/or Oz, whose campaign has been slammed for making light of John Fetterman’s stroke. Or maybe it will do wonders for the campaign he may have to run from prison.

Taylor Swift is keeping details on her upcoming 10th studio album, Midnights, mum, however, this isn’t stopping Swifties from adamantly searching for Easter eggs.

At the time of writing, Swift has confirmed nothing in regards to collaborators, producers, or even a lead single, however, she has shared various versions of the album’s artwork. In a video shared to social media, Swift is seen holding vinyl copies of Midnights, each with the tracklist intentionally blurred.

Fans don’t know when Swift will reveal the tracklist, however, a fake tracklist has circulated online. A Swiftie stan account shared an image of a tracklist that boasted collaborations with Lana Del Rey, Stevie Nicks, and The 1975. While fans were elated at the idea of a possible collaboration between Swift and The 1975, the band’s lead vocalist immediately shut down the rumors.

“I would love that!,” said Healy in a tweet. “But unfortunately FAKE NEWS :(”

Swift announced the release of Midnights last Sunday, following the MTV Video Music Awards, and said that the album would tell the story of “13 sleepless nights” throughout her career.

“This is a collection of music written in the middle of the night, a journey through terrors and sweet dreams,” she said in an Instagram post. “The floors we pace and the demons we face. For all of us who have tossed and turned and decided to keep the lanterns lit and go searching — hoping that just maybe, when the clock strikes twelve … We’ll meet ourselves.”

Midnights is out 10/21 via Republic. Pre-order it here.

On Saturday night, Donald Trump delivered an awkward — and, yes, vicious and divisive and disturbing and endless — speech at a rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. It was awkward because there’s a chance he could wind up indicted, even in prison for absconding with classified government documents. It was nasty because it was a Trump speech. There were a lot of bizarre and obvious lies peppered throughout the two-hour marathon, but perhaps the strangest was when he casually and baselessly accused a Democratic politician of being a drug addict.

Trump was ostensibly in the Keystone State to prop up two Republican candidates who are sagging in the polls: Doug Mastriano, who’s running for governor, and Dr. Mehmet Oz, who’s running for Senate. Trump’s speech, of course, was mostly about him. But he took some time to slam the latter’s opponent, John Fetterman, who’s relentlessly and creatively trolled Oz. The Oz campaign has responded by making light of the stroke Fetterman had in May. Trump, hardly a stranger to low blows, decided to go after his attire instead.

“This guy’s a disaster. He comes in with a sweatsuit on. I’ve never seen him wear a suit,” Trump told the crowd of people wearing t-shirts and sweatsuits. “A dirty, dirty, dirty sweatsuit, it’s really disgusting.” He then reminded the crowd, who look way more like Fetterman than Trump, that he’s a “clean freak,” adding that Fetterman dresses “like a teenager getting high in his parents’ basement.”

Trump then exaggerated Fetterman’s relatively lax stance on certain drugs, claiming he “supports taxpayer-funded drug dens and the complete decriminalization of illegal drugs, including heroin, cocaine, crystal meth, and ultra lethal fentanyl.” Then he casually threw in a baseless accusation: “By the way, he takes them himself.”

Eventually Trump let Oz himself make a little appearance, but his endorsement of “that guy” wasn’t exactly electrifying.

During his second of two shows at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on his After Hours Till Dawn tour, The Weeknd abruptly ended his show three songs into his performance.

While singing his 2015 hit single, “Can’t Feel My Face,” The Weeknd abruptly stopped in the middle of the song and exited the stage. Shortly after, he returned to the stage and told the audience of over 70,000 that he had lost his voice.

As the crowd expressed their disappointment, The Weeknd assured everyone, “You’ll get your money back. But I’ll do a show real soon for you guys.”

He continued, saying, “You know how much this kills me right now. I’m sorry. I love you so much.”

At the time of writing, it is unclear what The Weeknd’s condition is, however, in a fan-recorded video, viewers can hear a raspiness in his voice as he speaks.

Later that night, the “Out Of Time” singer took to social media, explaining that he had lost his voice earlier during the set, but had tried to push through.

“My voice went out during the first song and I’m devasted,” he said. “Felt it go and my heart dropped. My deepest apologies to my fans here. I promise I’ll make it up to you with a new date.”

While Week 1 of the college football season often features some big time matchups, this year was notable because of a few big games happening in non-neutral site kickoff games. The headliner was No. 5 Notre Dame going to Columbus to play No. 2 Ohio State, but the seventh-ranked Utah Utes made a rare cross-country journey to face the Florida Gators in The Swamp.

Despite Florida being unranked, Utah entered as just a three-point favorite and the game proved to be the kind of tight back-and-forth affair the oddsmakers predicted with the short spread. The Gators led by one at the half, but found themselves twice facing a deficit in the fourth quarter, but on each occasion they were able to turn to their young star QB Anthony Richardson to get the job done.

With under 90 seconds left in the game, Richardson pulled the ball on an option keeper and walked into the end zone to push the Gators back up by three, with Utah holding all three timeouts.

Utah would nearly see their comeback thwarted at midfield, when a Florida defender dropped into coverage and had the ball hit him in the hands, only to drop it. From there, it seemed the Utes might take advantage of that break as they marched inside the 10 where it seemed, at worst, we were headed to overtime.

However, on second and goal, Cam Rising tried to fit a ball in low to a receiver but got jumped by a diving Amari Burney, who held onto the pick this time for Florida and sent The Swamp into pandemonium.

It’s a huge win for Florida to open the season and gives new head coach Billy Napier a signature win under his belt before even heading into conference play. For Utah, it’s a gutting loss after having control of the game on a few occasions, but being unable to come up with the crucial stop in the fourth quarter they needed. It also is a big blow to the Pac-12’s hopes for a Playoff berth, as Utah entered the season as the conference favorites, and still are, but with a loss like this the margin for error to make the top-4 is incredibly thin.

Dean Craig has got a thing for death and dark comedy. The screenwriter behind Frank Oz’s Death at a Funeral (2007) — and Neil Labute’s 2010 remake — is stepping behind the camera for The Estate.

When sisters/business partners Macey (Toni Collette) and Savanna (Anna Faris) learn that their miserable Aunt Hilda (Kathleen Turner) is dying from cancer, they decide that getting on her good side might be their best last chance at inheriting her fortune and saving their soon-to-be-bankrupt cafe. Unfortunately, they’re not the only members of their family who decide that caring for Hilda in her final days could net them a bit of a windfall.

Upon arriving at Hilda’s estate, the sisters realize that their epiphany may have come too late, as it appears their cousins have been doing a better job of keeping up with their would-be benefactor. There’s Beatrice (Rosemarie DeWitt), who admits that Hilda “thinks the sun shines out of my ass,” and Richard, a.k.a. Dick (David Duchovny), whose idea of flattery includes telling his dying aunt that “if I weren’t your nephew I’d be only too happy to be inside you.” Which gives Macey and Savanna a darkly hilarious idea about how to out-maneuver their cousins.

Craig writes and directs the black comedy, which also stars Ron Livingston and Keyla Monterroso Mejia, who practically stole season 11 of Curb Your Enthusiasm as aspiring (terrible) actress Maria Sofia.

The Estate arrives in theaters on November 4, 2022.

It was an emotional day for all at Saturday’s (September 3) Taylor Hawkins Tribute in London. Foo Fighters paid homage to their late drummer with the help of many different major indie bands. The day became so difficult that at one point Dave Grohl, the band’s founder, was brought to tears while on stage.

An attendee shared a video on Twitter earlier in the day of Grohl visibly breaking down while performing “Times Like These.” The vocalist took about thirty seconds to gather himself before getting back into the performance, and right as the video closes, the band erupts into a massive crescendo. Grohl’s moment of tears is understandable, as it has been less than six months since his later drummer’s passing. However, he was able to get back on track and deliver a great set.

The tribute show also played host to members of AC/DC, Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Liam Gallagher, and a special appearance by Them Crooked Vultures who had not performed live in over 12 years. In a special moment, Dave Chappelle appeared on stage to discuss the time he was a guest on Saturday Night Live on the same evening Foo Fighters was the musical guest.

Check out the video of Dave Grohl’s emotional moment in the midst of “Times Like These” above.

The eyes of the college football world are on Columbus, Ohio on Saturday night. That’s because the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes are welcoming another top-5 team into their building, as the fifth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish made the trip from South Bend for a Week 1 showdown with major College Football Playoff implications.

The game has generated a whole lot of buzz, and not just because of the two teams that are playing. In fact, Ohio State basketball is getting a bit of publicity on Saturday, too, as 4-star 2023 prospect Bronny James has made the trip from southern California to Ohio’s capital on an unofficial visit. It is the first visit that Bronny has taken as he begins to sort out what his next step will be after his career at Sierra Canyon comes to an end next year.

Bronny isn’t the only person named LeBron James in attendance. His old man, a well-documented Buckeye fan, made the trip with him, and the pair were spotted on the sideline before the game with LeBron decked out in an OSU hockey jersey.

Rich Paul was also in attendance, as is Jayson Tatum, former Buckeye basketball great Evan Turner and his podcast co-host, Andre Iguodala.

As it turns out, people like going to big college football games when they are on campuses, who knew?