Category: Trending

Miley Cyrus is used to filling stadiums on sold-out tours. But with the pandemic, the singer won’t be able to perform to a live audience any time soon. However, Cyrus still managed to find a way to perform for a stadium, albeit an empty one. As part of a recent livestream, Cyrus gave a rendition of The Beatles’ “Help” in the center of a completely empty Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena.

Cyrus’ performance was part of Global Citizen’s Global Goal: Unite for Our Future livestream where she joined a handful of other musicians to raise funds for charity. Along with her rendition of “Help,” Christine And The Queens danced to “La Vita Nuova,” Chloe X Halle performed “Rest Of Your Life,” Usher sang his recently-released track “Cry,” and Coldplay’s Chris Martin crooned his song “Paradise.”

In other Cyrus news, the singer recently opened up about her sobriety in an interview, revealing that she’s six months sober and feeling great. Cyrus had originally gotten sober due to a vocal surgery back in November but she decided to stick with it. “The thing that I love about it is waking up 100%, 100% of the time,” she said. “I don’t want to wake up feeling groggy. I want to wake up feeling ready.”

Watch Cyrus perform “Help” as part of Global Citizen’s Global Goal: Unite for Our Future livestream above.

Gilead Sciences, the biopharmaceutical company that has been donating the ebola drug remdesivir to the U.S. Government for use in treatment against COVID-19 since May, announced on Monday that the company would begin charging for the drug in July. According to CNBC, remdesivir will be sold at a cost of $390 per vial to the governments of “developed countries” around the world, and $520 per vial for U.S. private insurance companies, charging a lower price for government programs like Medicare and a higher price for private insurers. A typical round of treatment with the drug will cost commercial health insurance companies $3,120 over five days.

How much of that expense gets transferred over to patients will be at the discretion of the companies and the policies of each individual patient. Some patients may not see costs, though patients with high deductibles could face the full expense. During a conference call with reporters, a senior official in the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that uninsured individuals will be covered under provisions of the CARES Act.

According to a study conducted by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, while not a cure, the use of remdesivir in treatment for the coronavirus has resulted in faster recovery time for COVID-19 patients, with patients generally recovering four days faster than those who didn’t take the drug. CNBC reports that the use of the drug in hospital recovery will save hospitals about $12,000 per patient due to early hospital discharge. Gilead predicts that the typical treatment will require five days and six vials of remdesivir at a cost of $3,120 to insurers in the U.S. but treatments can extend to ten-days which would require 11 vials at $5,720.

Speaking with Meg Tirrell on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Gilead CEO Daniel O’Day assured people that access to the drug would be plentiful “Whether you’re covered by a private insurer, whether you’re covered by a government insurer, whether you’re uninsured with COVID-19, there will not be an issue for access with remdesivir.”

Many people on Twitter didn’t share O’Day’s sunny outlook, with critics pointing out that the drug’s price could hit people hard during a pandemic, especially considering a more promising and much cheaper drug, dexamethasone, costs about $6 per day and is showing to be a major breakthrough in the treatment of COVID-19.

According to the BBC, dexamethasone, a drug that is already widely in use in the reduction of inflammation for arthritis, asthma, and certain skin conditions, is currently undergoing the world’s biggest trial testing existing treatments against the coronavirus, and has shown a lot of promise in its ability to prevent an overreaction of the immune response, which can result in a deadly cytokine storm. The use of dexamethasone has been shown to cut the risk of death from 40% to 28% for patients needing the aid of a ventilator and from 25% to 20% in those needing oxygen. In the U.S., the CDC reports that the current coronavirus hospitalization rate is about 98 people per 100,000 diagnosed.

Emoni Bates made history this year when the sophomore became the first underclassmen to ever win the Gatorade National Boys Player of the Year award. Bates is the top recruit in the 2022 cycle, and decided on Monday to go ahead and end the recruitment process and make his commitment known, despite having at least one more year left of high school, and likely two if he doesn’t reclassify.

Bates announced that he will be committing to Michigan State to play for Tom Izzo, as he told ESPN’s Mark Schlabach and Jeff Borzello.

“They get all my respect, really,” Emoni Bates said. “I love how they coach, Coach Izzo, I like how they focus on defense more than offense. That’s a big key in basketball and people don’t understand that. On and off the court, he has passion. He’s just an amazing guy, overall.”

Bates and his father also addressed the potential to reclassify, with both saying they expect him to play out his high school career, but leaving the door open for the possibility of him joining the Class of 2021 if things are “too easy.” Bates also announced that he’ll be leaving Lincoln High School and playing his next two seasons for a prep school that is being launched by his father, Elgin, and will be coached by his AAU coach, which plans to play a national schedule and be operated by his father beyond Emoni’s departure.

The announcement came as a bit of a surprise to Michigan State, but certainly a happy surprise as they land one of the premier prospects high school basketball has seen in recent history.

While there had been an expectation that 2022 would be the first draft without the one-and-done rule, allowing Bates to go straight to the NBA, those discussions are now on hold and it’s possible the NBA won’t get around to changing their draft rules until later. When asked by ESPN about the league’s G League alternative to college, Bates noted that its a good opportunity for some but did not think it would be something he’d be interested in.

“It’s good for certain players. That’s a lot of money,” he said. “I don’t really plan on, I don’t think I’ll do it. It’s good for some people, but I don’t think I’ll head that route.”

As it stands now, Michigan State is two years away from getting the nation’s best player. That can all change, whether by him reclassifying to 2021 or should the NBA go forward with eliminating the one-and-done rule, but it’s a good day in East Lansing regardless.

The vinyl fabric collectible figurine company Funko has unveiled its latest design. The popular company’s newest figure is My Chemical Romance vocalist Gerard Way. The design depicts Way sporting fiery red hair and was inspired by the band’s 2010 Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys era.

Way’s figurine is only available exclusively through Hot Topic but this isn’t the first time the singer has been celebrated with a Funko Pop. In the past, the company has issued a Funko of Way inspired by their 2006 album The Black Parade wearing his signature skeleton costume.

The Funko figure’s announcement arrives shortly after My Chemical Romance was forced to cancel their highly-anticipated reunion tour. Before the pandemic hit, the band was able to make a few tour stops. The band performed their first show in seven years in LA and excited fans lined up outside the venue several days in advance. Though this year’s reunion tour has been put on hold, the band just announced they will be headlining Riot Fest’s 2021 event.

Check out Gerard Way’s Funko collectible above. Pre-order it from Hot Topic here.

My Chemical Romance is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

TMZ reports that Nicole Young, Dr. Dre’s wife of 24 years, filed for divorce today, June 29, citing irreconcilable differences. The pair have been married since May 1996 and have two adult children together. According to TMZ’s sources, the couple did not have a prenuptial agreement and Dr. Dre’s net worth has been estimated at $800 million.

Dr. Dre has been hard at work on a collaborative project with Kanye West, of which Snoop Dogg posted a preview over the weekend. Dre is also billed as a possible participant in Swizz Beats and Timabaland’s Verzuz Livestream series in a head-to-head with Sean “Diddy” Combs. The date has not been set yet, but is one of the most anticipated hit battles on the agenda thanks to both producers’ arsenal of massive, genre-defining songs.

The news that Dre is splitting up with his wife comes in the middle of a year that seemed like it was going pretty well for him. Earlier this year, Dr. Dre’s iconic and groundbreaking solo debut album, The Chronic, was selected for inclusion in the Library of Congress and re-released to streaming services on 4/20, the day widely hailed as a celebration of marijuana — just like the album itself. Dre also received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2020 Grammy Awards.

When it comes to iconic Hollywood badasses, it doesn’t get tougher than Danny Trejo who worked his way from a convict to one of today’s most prolific actors. But the big screen muscle also has a heart of gold and a true devotion to paying his blessed life forward, and his journey from behind bars to behind the cameras is explored in the upcoming documentary Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo.

In an exclusive clip for The Hollywood Reporter, the documentary reveals how Trejo caught his first Hollywood break, and it involves a fortuitous colliding of the actor’s work helping recovering addicts and his past as a prison boxer. (Did we mention Danny Trejo was a prison boxing champ? Danny Trejo was a prison boxing champ.) According to Trejo, he was called down to the set of the 1985 film Runaway Train, which was filming a scene at a nearby warehouse full of extras dressed as convicts. A young man who Trejo was mentoring was concerned about the amount of drugs floating around the production, so being the dedicated sponsor that he was, he booked it over in the middle of the night to be his moral support.

While on the set, Trejo was asked if he wanted to play an extra, and he jumped at the easy money and opportunity to bring some authenticity to the production, which he felt was sorely lacking. After taking off his shirt to put on his convict blues, screenwriter Eddie Bunker immediately recognized Trejo from his prison boxing days and offered him a job coaching Eric Roberts for his role in the film. Although, Trejo was warned that Roberts was a little wild and there was a good chance he could get hit. Trejo, naturally, was not concerned.

“I said for $320, give him a stick!” Trejo laughs in the clip. “Are you crazy? I’ve been beat up for free, holmes.”

Here’s the official synopsis:

Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo is the feature documentary experience revealing the extraordinary life journey of Hollywood’s most unlikely hero, Danny Trejo. From an early life of drugs, armed robbery and hard prison time, to the red carpets of Hollywood blockbusters and helping troubled addicts. Danny gives a first hand account of one of the greatest transformations of human character ever put to film. To this day, Danny continues to council recovering addicts and speak at state prisons.

Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo hits VOD on July 7.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

Anthony Mackie entered the MCU as Sam Wilson/Falcon in 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which was the first of his seven Marvel Studios movies. Sam became the new Captain America in Avengers: Endgame, and he’ll soon appear in buddy-comedy form alongside Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes/Winter Solder in Disney+’s Falcon and the Winter Soldier, but Mackie’s not afraid to call Disney and Marvel Studios out for their shortcomings in the diversity realm. Mackie did so while chatting with Snowpiercer star Daveed Diggs “for Variety‘s “Actors on Actors” quarantine video interview series, and these remarks should resonate.

The Hurt Locker actor declared that he’s got the ability and the platform to raise these issues, and that’s why he’s openly wondering why “every producer, every director, every stunt person, every costume designer, every PA” in nearly every Marvel movie that he’s worked on has been white. From Mackie’s point of view, the issue became even more glaring when Black Panther became the “only” exception in the MCU:

“We’ve had one Black producer; his name was Nate Moore. He produced ‘Black Panther.’ But then when you do ‘Black Panther,’ you have a Black director, Black producer, a Black costume designer, a Black stunt choreographer. And I’m like, that’s more racist than anything else. Because if you only can hire the Black people for the Black movie, are you saying they’re not good enough when you have a mostly white cast?”

Will Disney and Marvel Studios issue a formal response to Mackie throwing down the gauntlet? Only time will tell.

In the meantime, Mackie also told Variety that Disney+’s Falcon and the Winter Soldier will feel like “a six or eight-hour movie.” That’s fantastic news, as is the tentative release date: August 2020. Not 2021! 2020.

(Via Variety)

Sports teams and leagues around the United States are currently trying to figure out how they should proceed with regards to the Black Lives Matter movement and not just supporting their players’ voices, but impacting change as organizations themselves.

One such way is to look internally at their own hiring practices and look to elevate more Black people to executive level positions and positions of power within the organization. Having prominent Black voices in the organization can also help them focus their efforts to create change in their communities as well, as evidenced by the Atlanta Hawks. Lloyd Pierce has been the head coach of the Hawks for the last two seasons and while he’s at the helm of a young, rebuilding squad that’s gone through its ups and downs on the court, his work off the court and in the community has been nothing short of spectacular.

Pierce has spoken previously about his work with the Georgia Innocence Project, and takes his role as a Black man with a prominent platform in the Atlanta community very seriously. Pierce has played a major role in the Hawks’ response to the current Black Lives Matter movement, speaking at marches and encouraging the team to look at what it can do as an organization in the community.

While many have pointed to voting as an important part of the process of initiating change in this country, the issue of voter suppression has often been glossed over. Seeing that issue pop up again during primary voting recently — notably in the predominantly Black areas of Atlanta — prompted LeBron James to get fellow star athletes from the sports world to start More Than A Vote, a nationwide program to not only encourage voter registration and being active in elections, but to combat voter suppression efforts in communities nationwide.

The Hawks made an announcement on Monday that they were taking a major step to try and make it easier for more people in Atlanta to vote, as the Fulton County Board of Elections made State Farm Arena an official voting precinct — which will now be Georgia’s largest-ever voting precinct. The significance of the Hawks getting their arena approved starting with the upcoming primary runoff elections on August 11 — with early voting July 20 — and the general elections this November is huge, particularly given the issues Fulton County voters have faced in recent elections.

The disparity between the voting experience in predominantly white neighborhoods in Atlanta and Black communities is preposterous — and the variance is not just from county to county but within counties as well. Voting machines that fail to work create long lines and wait times that can be many hours in predominantly Black areas, and the hope is that by opening such a large precinct in downtown Atlanta, more people will be able to vote — and do so faster.

It’s not just that the Hawks offered up their arena as a voting precinct, but are clearly putting time and resources into making it happen that offers some optimism that it can help the problem. Having an entity with the financial resources and influence in the city taking notice of this problem is important to highlight these issues and hopefully actually make a difference in changing the voting experience for the often underserved communities in Atlanta.

Orville Peck’s debut album Pony earned the infamously masked singer a reputation as a lead voice in queer country music. To celebrate Pride, Peck teamed up with Spotify to share a cover as part of their Spotify Singles series. The singer chose to give a rendition of ’80s group Bronski Beat’s anthem “Smalltown Boy.”

Peck holds on to the integrity of Bronski Beat’s 1984 track with lush synths but adds his own style by infusing country twang. The song itself is an ode to growing up gay in a small town and feeling like you don’t belong. “Mother will never understand why you had to leave / But the answers you seek will never be found at home / The love that you need will never be found at home,” Peck sings.

In other Orville Peck news, the singer was supposed to release the EP Show Pony several weeks ago but has since shelved the project to instead focus on supporting the Black Lives Matter movement. “We’re undergoing a huge overdue worldwide transformation thanks to the Black Lives Matter movement and that is mainly what I want to put my focus on at the moment,” he wrote on Instagram. “The momentum is currently so strong, and it needs to keep going in order to dismantle the injustices of oppression, so if your voice hasn’t been heard yet just use it, or walk out and hear the protesters, and if you’re scared, tell them Orville sent you!”

Listen to Orville Peck cover Bronski Beat’s “Smalltown Boy” above.

Haim shared their spectacular third album, Women In Music Pt. III, last week. To celebrate its release, the sisters return with a playful video to accompany their single “Don’t Wanna.”

The track was the sixth song Haim shared as a preview to their record and the “Don’t Wanna” video reflects the simplicity of their songwriting. Directed by Jake Schreier, Haim enjoy some friendly competition. The visual opens with the three walking in step but the sisters eventually find their competitive side and break out into a full-on sprint.

Sharing the video to social media, the group wrote that they chose to film on location outside of LA’s The Forum. They were originally scheduled to play a headlining show at the iconic venue before the pandemic canceled their plans.

Alana spoke about how the band “really loved” the song in a recent interview with Apple Music: “I think this is classic Haim. It was one of the earlier songs which we wrote around the same time as ‘Now I’m In It.’ We always really, really loved this song, and it always kind of stuck its head out like, ‘Hey, remember me?’ It just sounded so good being simple. We can tinker around with a song for years, and with this one, every time we added something or changed it, it lost the feeling. And every time we played it, it just kind of felt good. It felt like a warm sweater.”

Watch Haim’s “Don’t Wanna” video above.

Women In Music Pt. III is out now via Columbia. Get it here.