Ted Lasso‘s second season has sparked all kinds of internet discourse over its pacing, direction and just generally whether it’s OK for a show to have nice people doing nice things for each other as the general plot. Some of that talk has been in jest, but the conversations have been fairly consistent in recent days to say the least. But the latest episode of the Apple TV smash hit has some wondering if it’s actually revealed something even more interesting: an unreleased iPhone.
Apple is notorious about its secrecy when it comes to new technology, so the revelation would be a surprise. But a recent scene where Lasso, Keeley, his boss and another character were all eating lunch featured an Apple phone that appeared to lack the latest product’s signature notch. You can see two images of it below.
Apple TV+Apple TV+
Apple is certainly known for its product placement in its TV shows, as anyone who watched the first season of The Morning Show can attest. But Lasso, a show where a fake soccer team plays against real soccer teams and was filmed amid a pandemic, makes use of a good amount of CGI to make the show somewhat realistic-looking. So this may just be, well, a fake phone that wasn’t an exact model of a real Apple device. Or a computer-created device that simply doesn’t include all the quirks of the real deal.
Also, given how big a deal Apple makes out of new phone reveals, intentionally sneaking it into a show with little fanfare seems counterintuitive when it comes to marketing. Consider, also, that the phones traditionally get announced in the fall and Lasso‘s second season rollout technically saw it get pushed back a bit when it did not drop Season 2’s first three episodes all at once, as expected during its writing and filming.
In other words, is this a new iPhone reveal? Maybe! But it’s not like we’re getting specs of this bad boy until it’s on a slide above a very sleek stage, so perhaps it’s safe to assume this is a prop problem and not some kind of corporate espionage.
New Orleans and numerous other towns and cities along the gulf coast of Louisiana and Mississippi were devastated this weekend by Hurricane Ida, as the Category 4 storm ripped through the area causing flooding, physical destruction of homes and property, and widespread power outages.
As the storm passed and moved inland, the initial rescue efforts began in the areas that were hit the hardest, like LaPlace, Louisiana, as first responders and citizen groups like the Cajun Navy went out to try and rescue those trapped in their homes from rising floodwaters. In the coming days and weeks, a more full understanding of the devastation the region has faced from the storm will become clearer, but what is known right now is there is lots of work to do and many people who will be in need of significant assistance in rebuilding and recovering from another major hurricane.
On Monday, the New Orleans Pelicans and Saints released a statement offering support for the community and those who have been most effected by the storm, while also launching the Gulf Coast Renewal Fund, which will be seeded first by a $1 million donation from Pelicans and Saints owner Gayle Benson.
We want to do everything within our power to assist those who have been impacted by the storm and have activated our Gulf Coast Renewal Fund, with Gayle Benson making an initial donation of $1 million to support our community throughout Louisiana and the Gulf Coast. Those wishing to donate can do so by going to Pelicans.com/hurricaneida. More details on the fund and other initiatives will be provided in the coming days.
The GCRF will allocate funds to local organizations working in the community to help with disaster relief, and they promise more information and details will come soon. The statement also says that the Saints and Pelicans physical facilities, including the Caesars Superdome and Smoothie King Center, sustained only “superficial” damage and the teams have offered up the facilities for any governmental relief efforts, with the Pelicans practice facility being used by FEMA for staging purposes.
Of the various ways to speak the English language, the Scottish dialects are some of the most fascinating to listen to. I’m apparently not alone in this thinking, as TikTok has exploded with Scottish people simply sharing Scottish things with their Scottish brogue and collecting fans hand over fist.
As an American, I don’t always understand what these TikTokers are saying, which is probably why some of them specialize in translating Scottish slang terms into non-Scottish English. But even when there’s no issue understanding, there’s something part-funny, part-sexy about the Scottish accent that gets me every time. If I could pay James McAvoy to read me a bedtime story every night, I would.
In fact, McAvoy shared a bit about his accent in this clip with Stephen Colbert, which was the first time I’d seen a Scot explain that the word “burglary” trips them up.
James McAvoy Plays Stephen Colbert’s Lightning Round
Apparently, it’s not just him. There’s a well-known phrase, “purple burglar alarm,” that is notoriously difficult for some Scots to say without tripping over their tongue. And watching some of them try is delightfully entertaining.
The only thing better than a Scot being unable to say “purple burglar alarm” is a Scot who is able to say it because somehow it still sounds like they’re drowning.
There’s definitely no bad blood between Lil Nas X and skating pro Tony Hawk, in case you were concerned. The “Montero” rapper recently shared a few Instagram photos and a TikTok where the two are holding up Hawk’s Liquid Death Mountain Water board and taking turns riding it. “That’s how you skateboard,” Nas says at the end, with the joke clearly being that Hawk was the one doing the heavy lifting.
This comes a week after Lil Nas X called out the double-standards surrounding his infamous “Satan Shoes” compared to Hawk’s limited-edition “Liquid Death” skateboard, which is made with paint that contains Hawk’s actual blood. (As a reminder, the sneakers were also made with real human blood, and, in addition to a public outcry, the rapper actually ended up getting sued by Nike. Not so much with Hawk’s skateboard, however.)
“Now that tony hawk has released skateboards with his blood painted on them, and there was no public outrage, are y’all ready to admit y’all were never actually upset over the blood in the shoes? and maybe u were mad for some other reason?” the “Industry Baby” rapper tweeted last week.
now that tony hawk has released skateboards with his blood painted on them, and there was no public outrage, are y’all ready to admit y’all were never actually upset over the blood in the shoes? and maybe u were mad for some other reason?
Earlier in the day, Lil Nas X shared his Montero parody of Drake’s meme-fied Certified Lover Boy album art. It’s basically the exact same look, except all the female heads have been replaced with male ones. You know, rather like Arnold Schwarzenegger in Junior.
For anyone that logs on to Twitch on September 1, they might be surprised to find it much less active than usual. That is intentional because streamers from all over will be boycotting Twitch for “A Day Off Twitch” in support of marginalized streamers that are facing growing harassment on the platform. A trend called “hate raids” have been increasing across Twitch where waves of people are being sent to active streams and harassing them with hateful messages.
For anyone in need of a refresher, a raid on Twitch is when someone has wrapped up their stream they will send their audience of viewers to a different stream. It’s a way the streaming community supports one another by spreading the wealth. To let the streamer know they are being raided it is usually accompanied by a wave of messages, in their chat, related to the stream everyone is coming from. These hate raids however are not about showing support for one another. It’s targeted harassment and the trend is, unfortunately, becoming more common.
Twitch’s response to the hate raids have so far been to encourage their community to not do this and to request that users report anyone taking part in this. They have said they’re working on a fix, but the response has been slow and many streamers feel that their voices have been going unheard as the hate raids continue.
No one should have to experience malicious and hateful attacks based on who they are or what they stand for. This is not the community we want on Twitch, and we want you to know we are working hard to make Twitch a safer place for creators. https://t.co/fDbw62e5LW
We’ve been building channel-level ban evasion detection and account improvements to combat this malicious behavior for months. However, as we work on solutions, bad actors work in parallel to find ways around them—which is why we can’t always share details.
While it may sound like Twitch is responding to something that is only just now happening, these hate raids have actually been increasing since summertime. One of the first people to call out the hate raids was a streamer named “RekItRaven.” She posted a clip on Twitter of her receiving a string of targeted harassment in her chat. When she did it went viral with others speaking up about how they’ve been receiving similar messages in their streams. Via Waypoint.
“Each account of hate was disgusting and it has become more and more prevalent,” Raven told Waypoint, “so I decided to speak up and so many others did as well.”
…
“I think [hate raids] are a fairly large issue especially right now,” Lucia told Waypoint. “It’s a sign that there is a huge uptick in unchecked harassment which is becoming a norm of the platform’s culture.”
With Twitch not responding in a way that streamers find adequate, they are choosing to use their platform in a way to be proactive. While hate raids may be the most recent trend, Twitch is a platform that has been seeing increased harassment on it over the years, especially for streamers who are not straight white men. This boycott on September 1 will be the Twitch community’s response to that increased harassment as they hope to encourage change on the platform and get a stronger response from Twitch.
When the song in question, “Betrayal,” dropped with Drizzy rapping: “All these fools I’m beefin’ that I barely know / Forty-five, forty-four (Burned out), let it go,” he raps, which probably references Kanye’s age of 44, though his other GOOD Music rival, Pusha T, is also 44 years old. “Ye ain’t changin’ shi*t for me, it’s set in stone / Rollin’ stones, heavy stones (PinkGrillz) / Precious stone, let me make my presence known.”
Trippie, however, was completely in the dark as to the significance of the bars. “I thought he was talking about a strap or something, forty-five, forty-four,” he told 92.3 Real in an interview. “I didn’t know what he was talking about. It is what it is.”
Trippie Redd admits he missed Drake’s Kanye West “Betrayal” shots
At this point, R&B revivalist Summer Walker generates as many headlines for her drama-laced interactions with former beau London Holmes (better known as London on da Track) as she does for her admittedly heartfelt, relatable, commercially successful music. Today, she trended on Twitter after a series of posts on Instagram venting about the former couple’s relationship and current misadventures in co-parenting their newborn baby, including text posts deriding him on her private account @galactawhore and her a nearly eight-minute video on her main account.
In Story on her secondary account, she told fans, “London calling & dm’ing everyone around me cause he BLOCKED talking bout ‘if you care about summer get that n**** away from her.’ So if anything happens to me it was him. Ghetto baby daddy from hell. I be minding my business & NEVER call him unless it’s about the well being of my child. Smh crazy mf. & “that n****” has been raising your child since 2 months cause you ain’t sh*t and wouldn’t help me. You need to stop threating people & tell him thank you, f*ckin weirdo.”
Oop! Summer Walker with a few more words for London On Da Track! She claims he’s a pathological liar and a narcissist. She also called out one of the mothers of his children Eboni pic.twitter.com/mxJ4cmmyG2
In a later post, she called London “a pathological liar” and “narcissist,” accusing him of gaslighting her and again warning him to stay away from her. She also took on London’s other partners, calling them out for pursuing fights and friction in the face of her attempts to make peace. She broke down the situation in the lengthy video she placed on her own page.
For their part, London and the other women have refuted her claims, with London blaming Summer’s outburst on her “mental health” not being “where it need to be.” His other children’s mothers also dropped their own comments.
Eboni denies being involved with London On Da Track sexually and says she wishes him & his new girl well! Erica Racine also responds to Summer Walker’s allegations that she uses drugs & shares why London isn’t a deadbeat dad pic.twitter.com/WL6tewq7m3
London on da Track calls Summer Walker a liar, says he’s not calling or DMing her but doesn’t blow up her spot for her mental health pic.twitter.com/mUDEnijbNO
It’s beginning to look like the only way to fix this is getting Jada Smith on the phone and all four of these people onto the Red Table Talk. In the meantime, fans are convinced that all the extracurricular drama bodes well for the next album, giving the singer plenty of mess to address with her bluntly honest lyrics.
LondonOnTheTrack got some bitter ass babymommas! How tf y’all was mad he was messing with Summer Walker saying he don’t take care of his baby now they not together all of a sudden he wasn’t no dead beat pic.twitter.com/dhmfgVjB2O
At this point, there’s no argument about the situation in Afghanistan being a disaster. Yet there’s a lot of finger pointing going on. President Biden has pointed towards the Trump administration’s dealmaking for “peace” that ultimately wasn’t honored. An amped-up Don Jr. can’t stop gloating about the Fall of Kabul on Biden’s watch (and receiving comeuppance). And Don Jr. has claimed that his dad would swoop in like Batman and save everyone, which hasn’t happened, although Blackwater founder Erik Prince has been called “an absolute POS” for charging people $6500 for a ride out of town.
On the die-hard MAGA front, the blame keeps on flying after a U.S. drone strike with fallout, and reports that the Taliban is placing “kill” squads to go after U.S. allies. On that note, Scott Baio, who definitely has “Chachi” in his Twitter bio, tweeted a Fox News headline and tweeted at a handful of celebrity leftists to ask, “Where are you now?” One of those names happened to be 1980s pop sensation Richard Marx, to whom Baio declared, “his is your guy! Where are you now? I’m praying for our military that was killed and those left behind because of your guy. P.S. Trump has nothing to do with this.”
Well, Richard Marx responded. He didn’t defend Biden’s (pretty clearly botched) withdrawal tactics, but he did point out that this is a 20-year war, and no one single U.S. president is to blame. “The shitshow in Afghanistan has lots of multi-administration blame to go around,” Marx tweeted. “When your racist draft-dodging hero was calling our own military servicemen and women ‘losers and suckers’ where the f*ck were you? You disingenuous [redacted] little twerp.”
The shitshow in Afghanistan has lots of multi-administration blame to go around. When your racist draft-dodging hero was calling our own military servicemen and women “losers and suckers” where the fuck were you? You disingenuous rapey little twerp. https://t.co/hcwDG7GHw6
Marx wasn’t here for it, and he answered the question about what he’s been doing lately: “I’ve been tending to a family tragedy.” Then he added, “Be grateful all you have on your plate right now is tweeting Fox propaganda to people you’ve never met.” Fair enough.
PS: To answer your question, I’ve been tending to a family tragedy. Be grateful all you have on your plate right now is tweeting Fox propaganda to people you’ve never met. https://t.co/hcwDG7GHw6
Pokemon GO players have already seen a boycott get results from game maker Niantic amid a still-ongoing pandemic, and those on Reddit are now taking aim at the message board with a protest they hope sparks change online as well.
The Pokemon-based mobile game recently reversed its rule rollback about distance requirements and other pre-pandemic standards earlier in the year. That came following a boycott and plenty of noise on social media about the changes that went into effect as Niantic decided to take away some concessions they made at the start of the pandemic about proximity to real-life locations to complete tasks and challenges in the virtual world.
That pandemic is still ongoing, many pointed out, not to mention the accessibility issues for those in wheelchairs and who have mobility issues that those changes helped solve. So the decision to change course on that rollback was welcome news for basically everyone playing. And the community of people playing the billion-dollar game that celebrated its fifth anniversary recently has decided to keep its activism going on Reddit.
As Kotaku detailed, the r/pokemongo Reddit board has switched itself to “private” in an effort it says is directly tied to the way Reddit has moderated, or in most cases refused to moderate, the spread of coronavirus and vaccine misinformation on other boards.
During most of August, this obviously led to much discussion of the topic on the game’s Reddit channel, which in turn led to the arrival of a lot of users from less…scientifically minded Reddit subs, such as NoNewNormal, Conspiracy, and Conservative. Clearly this has meant a lot of distracting conversation about matters not directly relevant to POGO, and as a result the community has decided to go silent in protest against Reddit.
They say that until Reddit bans the NoNewNormal sub, and significantly improves its moderation regarding Covid misinformation on others, it will stay private.
It’s a really fascinating example of how direct action in many cases shows the power of organization and begets further direct action. And how online communities can see impacts in the real world and look to further action as a result. The message board is explicit about how this move is a result of pandemic misinformation, too. The front page of the game’s Reddit community now says the following:
“We have gone private in protest of Reddits inaction against Covid misinformation. As our users know Covid directly impacts this gamer because Go is played outside in real life with others. We have stood against Covid misinformation publicly before, and stood with the community when they petitioned Niantic to return the 80m distances so we could continue to play safely. To that end, we will stay private until NoNewNormal and similar subs dedicated entirely to misinformation are banned.”
The thing about insular communities, however, is that it’s tough to judge just how much an impact a small section of a site’s population can make. But Pokemon GO, a game many have left behind with their playing habits since its explosive first year, still has an extremely strong community of dedicated players. So we’ll see if Reddit listens to them about all this and actually makes positive changes.
Sometimes the best new R&B can be hard to find, but there are plenty of great rhythm-and-blues tunes to get into if you have the time to sift through the hundreds of newly released songs every week. So that R&B heads can focus on listening to what they really love in its true form, we’ll be offering a digest of the best new R&B songs that fans of the genre should hear every Friday.
This week is led by Wizkid who returns with a deluxe reissue of Made In Lagos, the beloved fourth album he released in October 2020. Elsewhere, Kehlani takes her fans back in time to 2014 with the re-release of Cloud 19, her debut mixtape, while Sevyn Streeter gears up to release her long-awaited sophomore album Drunken Wordz Sober Thoughtz.
Wizkid — Made In Lagos (Deluxe)
While “Essence” has been the song to love from Wizkid’s fourth album Made In Lagos, there are plenty of other records from the project to enjoy. In fact, this writer might argue that Made In Lagos is more than worthy of the “no skips” title. Nearly a year after its release, the afro-fusion superstar returns with a deluxe reissue of the album backed with four additions include Justin Bieber’s remix of “Essence.”
Kehlani — Cloud 19
Today, Kehlani is one of the industry’s favorite R&B singers, with her 2020 project It Was Good Until It Wasn’t proof of her popularity. However, seven years ago, she was just another aspiring singer looking to finally get her foot into the door of the industry. She released her debut mixtape Cloud 19 — an 8-track effort that delivered guest appearances from Kyle Dion and IAMSU — to the world and changed everything for her. Nearly a decade later, the singer added the album to streaming services — minus one song — and allowed her longtime fans to reminisce on the past while giving her newer supporters a chance to revisit where everything started for her.
Sevyn Streeter — “Nasty Girl” Feat. BIA
Sevyn Streeter has long been at work on her sophomore album Drunken Wordz Sober Thoughtz after the project was announced at the end of 2019, just two years after her debut Girl Disrupted. After multiple false starts, Sevyn finally locked in a release date for the upcoming album and the news came with her latest single, “Nasty Girl” with BIA.
Jayla Darden — “Exhuasted My Options” Feat. ESTA. & Sango
Detroit’s own Jayla Darden first earned herself some notable recognition through the release of her 2019 EP, Onto Something. Comprised of seven strong songs, it left listeners interested in whatever she had next to offer for the world. Since then, Darden has consistently released compelling singles, including the latest, “Exhausted My Options” with ESTA. and Sango. The hazy track is propelled by a thumping bass and Darden’s frustrations with failures within love.
Abby Jasmine — I Hate You 2
Less than a year after she updated her 2020 project, Who Cares? with four new songs, Abby Jasmine returns with yet another four-pack in the form of her new EP, I Hate You 2. As on 2019’s I Hate You All, Jasmine sticks to abbreviations for each of the tracks on the new EP: “POV,” “SOS,” “FML,” and “MIA.” I Hate You 2 is a strength-filled project that comes on the heels of what’s been a difficult year for the singer. “I lost one of my closest friends, so I had to take a little bit of time to find myself,” she said in a press release. “I’ve just been taking time to self-reflect, spend more time with people that matter to me.”
Reggie Becton — “So High” Feat. Ryahn
Reggie Becton’s hot streak is one to take notice of. The PG County, Maryland act has been on a roll since releasing his 2020 EP, Thank You For Listenin’. Becton got back to work this year with “Issues” and keeps the momentum alive thanks to “So High” with Ryahn. The track takes shape as a smoker’s comforting anthem while it presents a double entendre centered on wanting a good feeling to last forever, whether it be the effects of a nicely rolled blunt or the romantic partner of your dreams.
Josh Levi — “NASA”
Issa Rae’s growing record label, Raedio, already boasts a growing cast of acts that includes Yung Baby Tate and TeaMarrr. Now, the imprint has brought on Los Angeles-based singer and songwriter Josh Levi to release his new single, “NASA.” The song focuses on an unnamed woman who always catches the eye of men, but after she lands on Levi’s radar, he places himself above the guys of her past while acknowledging her desire to be a star.
Rotimi — All Or Nothing
Rotimi’s last project came towards the end of 2019 in what was, of course, a pre-pandemic world. The singer’s newest project, titled All Or Nothing, is the result of Rotimi making the best of the pandemic. Composed of 15 songs and guest appearances Yung Bleu, Tank, Fireboy DML, Stacy Barthe, his mother, and more, All Or Nothing showcases his finesse and sharps skills towards creating a body of work focused on deepest personal thoughts.
Eric Bellinger — “What About Us” Feat. Sevyn Streeter
Love is sometimes successful and other times it falls apart unexpectedly. On Eric Bellinger’s new song “What About Us” with Sevyn Streeter, the duo expands on the latter by taking a trip down memory lane on the single. Now that the dust behind their broken love has settled, Bellinger and Streeter’s realize their accounts of what went wrong are completely different thus bringing light to the saying, “There are three sides to every story.”
Yebba — “Boomerang”
In a little over a week, Yebba will share her debut album Dawn with the world, but before its arrival, the singer touches down with her latest single, “Boomerang.” The track delivers a tale of heartbreak and revenge sparked by Yebba’s unfaithful former lover. At the end of the day, the singer is left to hope that karma will deliver the payback she seeks to place upon her ex.
Mnelia — “My Bad”
United Kingdom’s Mnelia is looking to expand her worldwide audience in the R&B lane and her latest single, “My Bad,” is a successful step forward on that journey. On the track, she makes it clear the self-love, growing and improving as a person, and prioritizing her worth are things she is focused on as she looks to move on from a past relationship. “My Bad” is both powerful and elegant as it highlights the noteworthy talents Mnelia possesses.
V. Cartier — “Westside”
V. Cartier calls Los Angeles, CA home so it’s no surprise that his new single is an invitation to spend time with him on the West Coast of the country. “Westside” is a warm invitation to a special lover to join him for a romantic day together. Giddy production laced with fluttering trumpets provide the perfect landscape for a track about nurturing a growing love.
Kyle Banks — “Bad Bih”
Kyle Banks looks to make his own lane in the music industry with his new song, “Bad Bih.” The Red Bull Records signee delivers the passionate single with a matching visual portraying his experiences in Black America, juxtaposing scenes of him spending time with his love interest with tense ones finding Banks getting pulled over by a police officer.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
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