Category: Viral

Officially, Sirens is a “limited series” on Netflix, meaning that this was intended as a one-and-done type of show. Also officially, Sirens is a hit with the dark comedy series racking up 16.7 million views and 79.2 hours streamed within the first week of release. And we know what frequently happens to wildly successful limited series (see Netflix’s The Four Seasons along with Hulu’s Nine Perfect Strangers and HBO’s The White Lotus and Big Little Lies) on streaming and cable. That label frequently falls by the wayside, so it’s no wonder that people are asking whether that might happen here, too.

Sirens was bound for success while targeting the same audience as the above-mentioned shows while exploring class and power (with a Greek mythological twist) at a lavish estate. The bang-up cast includes Julianne Moore (whose filmography is still kicking), Kevin Bacon (whose The Bondsman is awaiting renewal), Meghann Fahy (who was the The White Lotus second-season breakout), and Milly Alcock (who has gone from dragons to James Gunn’s DCU), so of course the series ascended the charts.

And not everybody in this series was left standing where they first appeared. The most pivotal twist resulted in Alcock’s Simone replacing Moore’s Kiki as partner of Bacon’s Peter Kell, and there’s certainly room to follow up on that story (or anthologized stories of different characters), if Netflix so chooses.

Will There Be A Sirens Season 2 On Netflix?

Don’t hold your breath. Netflix is hanging onto the “limited series” labelling for now, although if the streaming numbers stay strong, you can bet that discussions will take place, as is currently the case for Netflix’s Adolescence.

On the subject of one ambiguous closing thread, showrunner Molly Smith Metzler spoke with Netflix and addressed the “recasting” of Mrs. Kell in the story what Simone’s true feelings might be:

“There’s this sense of, ‘There’s just a new Mrs. Kell now?’” she says. “She’s been recast, and it’s sort of like [on TV], when we just pretend the actor isn’t different. There’s ferocity to that world and the way people come and go.”

So is Simone happy in that final shot, looking out at the water? “Well, it’s funny because I’ve seen all the different tapes and the one we used, we all described as the Mona Lisa smile because in that famous painting, you don’t really know exactly what she’s thinking,” says Smith Metzler. “And so the fun is that it’s up to you in the audience to decide how she feels about it and how you feel about it. I have my answer, but I don’t know that it’s the answer.”

Good luck in holding onto that role, Simone? The five-episode season of Sirens is currently streaming on Netflix.

This week’s episode of Sound Check with Jeremy Hecht stars experimental Vancouver singer-songwriter-rapper Ekkstacy. Jeremy puts his fellow Canadian through some tough choices this time around, pairing thrash-rap faves and alt-rock classics. Fresh off the release of his new album, Forever, the genre-bending artist stopped by Uproxx Studios ahead of his Forever Tour to take on the Sound Check challenge.

Here’s how it works: Jeremy plays two songs for the guest artist, who has to choose one and explain their choice, giving Jeremy a chance to learn their musical taste. Jeremy then has to guess the artist’s life anthem, the song they’d take to a desert island, which the guest wrote down earlier on a piece of paper. Our production team has also given him a decoy song, and Jeremy has to guess which is correct based on what he’s learned in the previous rounds.

Ekkstacy has to pick between The Cure and The Smiths, Lil Peep and XXXTentacion, The Misfits and Nirvana, and his collaborators The Kid Laroi (“Alright“) and Trippie Redd (“Problems“), leaving Jeremy to choose between songs from Nirvana and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Can our host restart his hot streak?

Watch Ekkstacy take on the Sound Check challenge above.

The 2025 BET Awards are swiftly approaching, and after announcements of nominees, performers, and some of the BET Experience activities the weekend prior to the show, the network has now announced the recipients of the Ultimate Icon Award. “Celebrating their decades of groundbreaking contributions to music, entertainment, advocacy, and community impact,” the award will be given to Mariah Carey, Jamie Foxx, Kirk Franklin and Snoop Dogg, all of whom are also billed to perform. The 2025 BET Awards air live on Monday, June 9, at 8 PM ET.

Kevin Hart was announced as the host a few weeks before the show, and Kendrick Lamar is the most-nominated artist with 10 nominations, including Album Of The Year, Viewer’s Choice, and Video Of The Year. Doechii, Drake, Future, and GloRilla are all tied with six nominations each. This year’s performers will include GloRilla, Lil Wayne, Leon Thomas, Playboi Carti, and Teyana Taylor, with more performers to be announced.

In the days leading up to the show, Los Angeles will once play host to the BET Experience festival, with activations and concerts beginning Thursday, June 5, and running through the weekend. In addition to the 25th anniversary of 106 & Park, this year’s BETX will also feature the return of the BETX celebrity basketball game, featuring BossMan Dlow, Cordae, G-Herbo, Hunxho, Kalan.FrFr, Pardison Fontaine, Rapsody, Rob49, and more.

Shaboozey turned heads, including his own, at the 2025 American Music Awards this past weekend. While presenting an award alongside fellow country singer Megan Moroney, Shaboozey had a visible side-eyed reaction when Moroney made a comment about how the Carter family “basically invented country music.”

Later, he took to X to explain, “When you uncover the true history of country music, you find a story so powerful that it cannot be erased…,” and, “The real history of country music is about people coming together despite their differences, and embracing and celebrating the things that make us alike.”

Just because he didn’t agree with what Moroney said, though, doesn’t mean he had any ill will against her.

In the comments of one of her recent Instagram posts (as Deadline notes), Shaboozey wrote:

“Just want to clear something up: my reaction at the AMAs had nothing to do with Megan Moroney! She’s an incredibly talented, hardworking artist who’s doing amazing things for country music and I’ve got nothing but respect for her.

I’ve seen some hateful comments directed at her today, and that’s not what this moment was about. Let’s not twist the message – she is amazing and someone who represents the country community in the highest light!”

So, if you’re picking on Moroney to defend Shaboozey’s honor, leave her alone.

Over the course of his decade-long career, Bryson Tiller has become one of R&B’s most elusive figures. He’ll often disappear for years at a time after a new release; four years passed between his two most recent projects, 2020’s Anniversary and 2024’s Bryson Tiller. But it looks like that pattern may soon be changing, as he’s just announced a follow-up to the latter in the form of a double album. Solace & The Vices is “coming soon,” according to the Louisville native’s Instagram post, and as it’s “inspired by fall,” perhaps that’s when fans can expect a release.

“S O L A C E • somber, vulnerable, my own personal therapy session,” he wrote in the caption. “Saying things I wouldn’t normally say out loud. Inspired by the season my life changed 4ever, FALL.THE VICES • Fun, Energetic, Bars on Bars, Summer Vibes, leaning into my ‘other’ side. COMING SOON! Thank you to all the fans who never left my side.”

From that description, it does appear that the album will be fairly evenly split between the moody R&B that characterized some of Tiller’s fan favorites and the energized rap for which he gave himself the cheeky nickname “Pen Griffey Jr.” Stay tuned.

Selena Gomez appears to be a pretty big basketball fan: Here she is at an NBA game in 2024 and more recently, here she is at a Boston Celtics/New York Knicks playoff game. Even while at a Beyoncé concert this past weekend, she made sure to keep tabs on the Knicks’ Eastern Conference Finals series against the Indiana Pacers.

While at the show, Gomez took to her Instagram Story to share a POV photo from her vantage point inside a private suite, with the concert happening in front of her while watching a Knicks/Pacers game on her phone. She captioned the post, “Still got my eye on the game.”

As BuzzFeed notes, reactions online were mixed. One X user wrote, “all i’m gonna say is a true musician wouldn’t treat a beyoncé concert as background noise,” while another said, “she must be her own biggest enemy because imagine going to a beyonce concert sitting your ass way back there and watching baseball on your shitty phone AND being PROUD ENOUGH TO POST THAT.” Meanwhile, on Reddit, somebody noted, “I live in NYC and plenty of my friends who went to the Cowboy Carter show last night also had the game on their phones… I’m not a basketball fan but apparently it’s been a big deal.”

BET has billed its 2025 BET Awards — airing live from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on June 9 at 8PM ET / 5PM PT — as the biggest show yet. There’s certainly plenty to be excited about: an amped-up host, the 25th anniversary reunion for the cast of 106 & Park, and the four-day buildup, the BET Experience Fan-Fest, taking over from Thursday to Sunday with activations, concerts, and even celebrity basketball games.

To find out more about the 2025 BET Awards, including the host, nominees, and performers, see below.

Host

Kevin Hart was announced as the host of the 2025 BET Awards on April 22 with a comedic video full of references to viral internet trends of the past few months. Some of the included references included fitness influencer Ashton Hall’s insane morning routing and the “spirit tunnel” guests of the Jennifer Hudson Show are subjected to on their way to the stage, all given a hilarious twist by the host, who insists that this year’s show will pull out all the stops in his return as host. You can watch the video below.

Nominees

Kendrick Lamar is the most-nominated artist this year (10 nominations), with nods for Album Of The Year for GNX; three Best Collaboration nominations for “Like That” with Metro Boomin and Future, “30 For 30,” and “Luther,” both featuring SZA; three Viewer’s Choice Award nominations for “Like That,” “Luther,” and Kendrick’s breakaway hit “Not Like Us”; and a Video Of The Year nomination for “Not Like Us.”

The next most-nominated artist is Kendrick’s former labelmate Doechii, who is nominated for six awards. Those include Album Of The Year for Alligator Bites Never Heal; Best Female Hip Hop Artist; Viewer’s Choice for “Denial Is A River”; and Video Of The Year for “Denial Is A River.”

Drake, Future, and GloRilla are all tied with Doechii with six nominations each, including Album Of The Year, Video Of The Year, and Best Male Hip-Hop Artist for both Drake and Future, and Best Female Hip-Hop Artist and Album Of The Year for Glo. Other nominated artists include Arya Starr, Lil Wayne, Playboi Carti, SZA, The Weeknd, and Tyler The Creator.

The full list of nominations can be found here.

Performers

BET announced the first slate of performers for the 2025 BET Awards on May 15, including GloRilla, Lil Wayne, Leon Thomas, Playboi Carti, and Teyana Taylor. Presumably, more performers will be announced ahead of the show.

Connie Orlando, EVP of Specials, Music Programming & Music Strategy at BET, said in a press release: “We’re setting the tone for a night that celebrates 25 years of impact, creativity, and Black culture. With electrifying performances from some of the biggest names in music and an iconic comedic host, ‘BET Awards’ 2025 will be a can’t-miss celebration of everything the culture represents.”

Presenters

Presenters for the 2025 BET Awards have not yet been announced; stay tuned for more info.

Sufjan Stevens’ 2015 album Carrie & Lowell was a triumph and both a commercial and critical high for the artist. It’s one of Stevens’ two albums to peak inside the top 10 on the Billboard 200 chart (the other being its predecessor, 2010’s The Age Of Adz). On Metacritic, it’s also just one of his two studio albums to have a Metascore of at least 90 (Illinois is the other). He even announced a 10th-anniversary reissue of the project recently.

Yet, he’s “kind of embarrassed by” it now.

He said that in a new interview with NPR and explained:

“Because I sort of feel like I don’t have any authority over my mother and her life or experience or her death. All I have is speculation and my imagination and my own misery, and in trying to make sense of it all, I kind of felt like it didn’t really resolve anything.”

He added that he doesn’t “feel good about myself for making these songs,” and when asked if he regrets making the album, he said, “Yeah, I do. I feel bad. It’s just a bummer that my mother’s not alive and can’t speak for herself. What would she say about all this? Maybe she would be proud. I’ll never know.”

Elsewhere, when asked, “So do you not see yourself doing another vocal album for a while,” he answered, “Yeah, I haven’t really been writing songs — I’ve been just doing a lot more instrumental stuff, and producing other people’s work. I’m kind of allowing myself to live in that world where I don’t have to say anything.”

Read the full interview here.

Rising star Jessie Murph has been making an impact in recent months, with her revenge anthem “Blue Strips” getting a raucous remix featuring unbothered queen Sexyy Red. Today, they released a suitably hedonistic video for the unapologetic single, going from setting off fireworks in a parking lot to doing body shots with the dancers at a gentlemen’s club. Along the way, there’s twerking in a limo, raiding the local five-and-dime for party supplies, and street racing with bikers on the streets of Nashville.

Murph’s genre-blending rise to stardom started when the singer was just a teen, but has kicked into high gear over the past year, thanks in part to her experimentations with hip-hop through both collabs with rappers like BigXThaPlug and her own rap-referencing singles like “Gucci Mane.” Sharing the stage with Jelly Roll at Stagecoach Festival as a surprise guest certainly didn’t hurt, and her Worldwide Hysteria Tour is rapidly cementing her status as one of the names to watch in country music as the genre surges back onto the pop charts. Meanwhile, Sexyy Red is doing some high-profile collaborating of her own, linking up with Tommy Richman, Bruno Mars, and Snoop Dogg.

Watch Jessie Murph and Sexyy Red turn up in their hedonistic ‘Blue Strips’ video above.

James Gunn’s DCU is taking shape this year with the upcoming Superman (starring David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, and Nicholas Hoult) acting as a barometer of whether superhero movies can still make bank. We’ll find out how that goes in July, but the trailers highlighting Krypto and hard-hitting Lois Lane do bode well for mounting audience interest.

Yet one aspect of Gunn’s interwoven titles that isn’t being talked about enough would be the connecting thread of Rick Flag, Sr. He is, of course, the father of Joel Kinnaman’s The Suicide Squad character, who was killed by… [cough] Peacemaker. The more seasoned Flag is being portrayed by Frank Grillo (and his trademark hair), and the MCU veteran has already picked up the role in the animated Creature Commandos as well as Superman. Also, Flag will also throw down in the next Peacemaker season, so watch out, John Cena.

The HBO Max series starring Cena as the jingoistic mercenary will soon return, and it’s now a matter of when that will happen.

Does Peacemaker Season 2 Have A Release Date?

August 21. That message arrives straight from Eagly in the below poster.

The second season’s logline is as follows:

The new season follows Christopher “Chris” Smith, aka Peacemaker, the vigilante Super Hero as he struggles to reconcile his past with his newfound sense of purpose while continuing to kick righteous evil-doer butt in his misguided quest for peace at any cost

In addition to Cena flexing, the second season brings back Danielle Brooks, Jennifer Holland, Robert Patrick, Steve Agee, Freddie Stroma, and Eagly. New additions include Tim Meadows and Action Grillo, who you can catch a glimpse of in the below trailer.