Category: Viral

After the platform took it back to the 1980s with their Teddy Riley and Babyface battle back in April, Verzuz opted to celebrate the 80s once again in their most recent battle between Gladys Knight and Patti LaBelle. A well-received battle by viewers with more 3.7 million tuning in to see, the showdown became the second-highest tweeted battle for the platform since it started earlier this year. While Gladys Knight and Patti LaBelle’s Verzuz served to be another successful one for the Timbaland and Swizz Beatz, it was even more successful for Gladys Knight and Patti LaBelle as the duo earned the best streaming weeks of their career following the battle.

According to Billboard, Patti LaBelle and Gladys Knight earned a combined total of 4.1 million on-demand streams in the U.S. between the days of Sept. 13-16. That number compares to the 1.8 million on-demand streams that the duo earned in the four days leading to their battle. Knight contributed 1.9 million on-demand streams of the 4.1 million total, while LaBelle contributed the remaining 2.2 million.

Looking at the groups’ individual numbers and stretching the time range to a week, Knight earned a total of 2.45 million streams during the week of Sept. 11-16, a personal best for the singer as it passed her previous record of 2 million streams which she earned in the week ending on August 8, 2019. As for Labelle, her total of 2.2 million streams eclipsed her weekly best record of 1.4 million streams, one she earned in the week ending on December 26, 2019.

(via Billboard)

Donald Trump’s long history of comments critical of various journalists in the United States took a much more inflammatory tone on Saturday when he celebrated that an MSNBC journalist was shot by police with rubber bullets while covering a peaceful protest earlier this year.

During a rally on Saturday, Trump spoke positively about an incident where police fired rubber bullets at MSNBC journalist Ali Velshi while the host of Velshi was covering peaceful protests.

“He got hit on the knee with a canister of tear gas,” Trump said, though it was actually a rubber bullet fired by police. “Wasn’t it really a beautiful sight? It’s called law and order.”

The incident, which happened in May, has come up during Trump rallies before. You can see the attack captured on video below.

The comment drew cheers from the rally, but immediate condemnation online, especially from journalists and those working at MSNBC in particular. Velshi responded on Twitter on Saturday, asking what crimes he committed that deserved the “law and order” he’s describing.

Velshi also retweeted various criticisms of Trump’s comments and defenses of his own actions covering what was a peaceful protest before police opened fire. But perhaps the strongest words against Trump in this case came from Jake Tapper, who called Trump’s comments “absolutely heinous” and called on other journalists to condemn the president’s view on journalists covering peaceful protests.

“Anyone celebrating that violence has something wrong with them, and it’s twisted for anyone least of all a president to call it “law and order,”” Tapper wrote. “No journalist should find this acceptable.”

MSNBC also released a statement condemning Trump on Saturday, saying the president’s words “endangers thousands of other journalists and undermines their freedoms.

Bino Rideaux first earned notoriety thanks to impressive contributions on tracks with Dave East, Drakeo The Ruler, and Nipsey Hussle. Fresh off a record deal with Def Jam, Bino aimed to raise his stock even more with his 2020 project, Outside, which boasted features from Snoop Dogg, Blxst, Ty Dolla Sign, and more. Breathing new life into the project, Bino Rideaux earns another marquee cosign via Young Thug as the two connect in the video for the new remix of his Outside highlight, “Mismatch.”

Posted up with the homies in under a blend of red and blue lightning, Bino leads the way by firing off his verse on the track, which also he performs from an elevator accompanied by two of his friends. He also shows off a bit of a two-step as he raps through his verse while flexing his clean whip and a female partner, who poses in the passenger side with him.

Lending the mic to Young Thug, the ATL native also turns up with Bino and his crew while opting for the evil scientist look, as he sits in a makeshift lab that features live wires attached to him and flickering lights above him. The video ends with Bino paying his respects to Nipsey Hussle, Pop Smoke, and his late friend KP. Fellow YSL rapper Gunna also makes an appearance in the video.

Bino previously stopped by the UPROXX to perform “Mismatch” as a part of the UPROXX Sessions. Watch the video for the “Mismatch” remix above.

Ty Dolla Sign is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Big Sean and Jhene Aiko first united to create Twenty88 in 2016 with the duo’s self-titled project which also arrived that same year. After its release, Twenty88 quickly became a favorite of both Sean and Jhene’s fanbases and in the years since the project’s arrival, fans have repeatedly asked both artists when they would received a follow up. Four years removed from their initial project, Big Sean finally confirmed its existence.

During a recent AMA Reddit session Big Sean was asked about another Twenty88 album by a user who said, “I really like ‘Time In.’ Are you guys working on a new TWENTY88 album?” to which Big Sean replied, “It’s in the works.”

The news comes after Twenty88 reconnected on Sean’s Detroit 2 album on “Time In.” Since the release of Twenty88 in 2016, the duo has worked together on two other occasions, both which date back to 2017 thanks to “OLLA (Only Lovers Left Alive)” from Jhene’s Trip album and “Same Time, Pt. 1” from Big Sean’s I Decided effort.

The news comes after Big Sean shared a new video for “ZTFO” off Detroit 2, an album that became his third consecutive to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard albums charts. You can see Big Sean’s comment on the Twenty88 album above.

The prices and specifics of the next level of gaming’s console war are finally in place, but Sony isn’t happy with how its PlayStation 5 presale went and promised gamers they’ll make it right. The gaming giant was the last to set pricing and release details for its next-gen console, with Xbox taking the low price point with its Series S while Sony offered two consoles as well.

While new Xbox consoles will hit presales on September 22, Sony had Friday set for their own presales through various retailers throughout the week. And there were a lot of problems, long wait times, and frustrated gamers. Some preorders went up earlier than Sony had claimed, while others quickly sold out and even had some orders already pushed past launch day delivery dates.

On Saturday, the company admitted preorders “could have been a lot smoother” and promised more consoles are on the way, with new preorder setups coming from various retailers in the coming days and more consoles on the market by the end of the year.

Given the attention both consoles have gotten and the year it’s been, there were bound to be issues with how the preorder rollout went down. The company had previously assured gamers that they would have some notice and an orderly setup for snagging a PlayStation 5, but what resulted was a much more scattershot ordeal that was admittedly difficult to keep track of. We’ll see if Microsoft can avoid the same problems next week.

Selena Gomez has often used her platform to advocate for change. A recent example came earlier this year, when she let black voices like Killer Mike take over her Instagram account to teach her followers about activism. Now Selena is calling out Facebook executives, asking that they fight against the spread of misinformation and racism littered about the social media platform. She sent a private message to chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg and chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, which she then shared to her Instagram story. In it, she requested that they “shut down groups and users focused on spreading hate speech violence and misinformation.”

“It’s been a while since we sat down. We have a serious problem,” Gomez wrote. “Facebook and Instagram are being used to spread hate, misinformation, racism and bigotry. I am calling you both to help stop this. Please shut down groups and users focused on spreading hate speech violence and misinformation. Our future depends on it.”

Selena concluded her message by reminding Zuckerberg and Sandberg of the looming election. “We cannot afford to have misinformation about voting,” she said. “There has to be fact-checking and accountability. Hope to hear back from you ASAP.”

You can see her message to Zuckerberg and Sandberg in the photo above.

The Boston Celtics caused a bit of a stir after their Game 2 loss to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. Reports came out of Marcus Smart causing a bit of a ruckus in the locker room after the game, with further reporting indicating that he and Jaylen Brown got into it. After everyone cooled off, Brad Stevens sat down with his team leaders — Brown, Smart, Jayson Tatum, Kemba Walker — to talk things through.

Considering the stakes of this series and the 0-2 hole Boston faces, it’s unsurprising that Smart got riled up. But in the eyes of one of the NBA’s best provocateurs, this doesn’t mean anything other than his belief that Boston is a winning team. Draymond Green has joined Turner for its coverage of the NBA postseason, and on Friday evening, the Golden State Warriors’ emotional leader laid out the dynamics that are at play on good and bad teams, particularly when it comes to how they interact with one another in moments of tension.

“The reality is, though, I think winning teams argue way more than losing teams,” Green said. “Because losing teams, they bicker. So if I’m on a losing team, I’m gonna come to you, Ernie, and say, ‘Hey man, Shaq ain’t pass me the ball and he’s freezing me out.’ And then you partner up with me, and me and you look at Shaq like he’s crazy. A winning team is gonna say, ‘Jayson, your body language was terrible in the first quarter,’ because that’s what I saw when I was watching the game. Their offense is on the run, they’re up a couple points, and he’s not touching the ball and he’s dropping his shoulders, but you’re the best player on the team. So yes, I am going to say something about that.

“Winning teams will always argue more than losing teams,” Green continued. “And in fact, the media can love losing teams if they want, if they don’t want any arguing, and those teams will just lose, and that’s that.”

It is the least surprising thing in the world that Green would take this approach to internal strife, but it is still interesting that he clearly believes this can end up being a good thing for Boston. They’ll get the chance to prove him right on Saturday evening when they take on the Heat in Game 3 of the conference finals.

Baby Keem’s first found fame last year with his Platinum single “Orange Soda,” which later found its way onto his Die For My B*tch project. More recently he was included in the 2020 XXL Freshman class. He’s returned with two new singles, “Hooligan” and “Sons & Critics (Freestyle),” the former which now has a new music video.

Keem goes against the grain for his new video, taking a backseat role and allowing his female co-stars to rap the words of his song while he stays silent besides them. The track is executive produced by Kendrick Lamar and Dave Free.

The video arrives half a year after Keem, Kendrick Lamar, and Dave Free announced their “multi-lingual, at service company” PgLang, with the help of singer Jorja Smith and actor Yara Shahidi. According to the company’s mission statement, “PgLang is focused on using our experiences, and nurturing our many collaborators, to build stories that are equally accessible and engaging then fitting them within the best media.” Keem also referenced the company in his “Sons & Critics (Freestyle).” “We got Telfar bag, what’s your taste level on?” he raps. “Mine is pgLang, no, you didn’t hear wrong.”

You can check out the video for “Hooligan” above.

It’s slim pickins’, folks! We’re down to four teams left in the Bubble, and as a result, we are fishing in a shallower pool, reeling in fewer and fewer posts to sustain ourselves with, much like the bass in the Disney ponds which seemed to fall off pretty quick either due to overfishing or over-exposure. But I’m sure whatever fish are left are breathing (bubbling?) easy now that Playoff P is gone.

So this will be short and sweet, but as we move into the conference finals, it’s still been an eventful, “CLANKING” week. Here we go.

Jimmy Butler

Big Face Coffee is doing BUSINESS in the Bub but before we get to grind behind the macchiato mogul — it was also his birthday this week! That’s right, Jimmy Beans does age after all. The Heat rookies serenaded Butler as he interrupted them multiple times to insist they look him directly in the eye while they sang him “Happy Birthday.” The best part is, there’s no way Butler could look them all in the eye simultaneously.

Ok, onto our Big Face fix. In a very wise entrepreneurial move, Butler started to wear his own merch around this week, driving up interest (mine, for sure, and I assume everyone else who knows anything about fashion but more importantly style, taste, etc.) for when these pieces will be hitting the market.

Rating: Knock-offs are fine too, I’m not proud.

Jayson Tatum

Before the Celtics went radio silent, Tatum shared some pretty sweet moments of relief in having his son, Deuce, with him in the Bub. Here’s the little dude really extending diagonally into that king size bed.

Rating: If there are Celtics fans out there moaning that Tatum didn’t get a good enough night’s sleep because of this, so help me.

Goran Dragic

Loyal and supportive teammate of Butler and Big Face Coffee, Goran Dragic, headed down the hall to the Bubble’s best coffee shop only to find it closed. Distraught, because he had even brought cold hard cash, Dragic lamented that he may have no other choice but to go to Little Face Coffee. What!!!

Ok but don’t worry, the very next day Dragic got his fix and was comped one free coffee. Which honestly seems like winning the lottery.

Rating: I like to think Big Face’s hours are from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m., anything later and you’ve already ruined your day by not seizing it, why bother.

Little Face Coffee Mystery: SOLVED

Ok, bear with me. I have some friends who have a friend who is a Heat insider and they said it was Bam Adebayo who made this sign and started up a rival coffee shop.

But, in the late hours Friday night, sitting out under some swaying palms, Dragic revealed to the world the coffee contender was none other than a Miami Heat trainer named Brandon Gilliam, who Dragic doesn’t seem to remember the name of? But maybe it was the excitement of the moment, like being there when Mr. Coke and Mr. Pepsi did their first duel at high noon.

Rating: Looking for a Medium Face Coffee to come in here and blow the disposable lid off this caffeine conglomerate.

Kyle Kuzma

Kuzma’s girlfriend, fashion model Winnie Harlow, has been and left the Bubble. The two are very cute. They made the most of being stuck in a small square-foot radius and also went golfing, Harlow being the power behind the wheel.

Rating: I like it better calling Kuz Winnie Harlow’s boyfriend, that’s the rule from here on out.

JaVale McGee

McGee’s daughter Genevieve, “Gigi,” is hands down the cutest of all the children we are lucky to get to know a little about in the NBA. I’m sorry, but she could clean to floor with all of them. Anyway! She’s really been enjoying her time in the Bubble, learning tae kwon do and meditating, doing pranks with straw wrappers (classic!), plus ripping down that huge Temple of Doom slide getting shamefully underutilized.

Rating: Yes, I said a child could defeat the other children and I stand by it — IT’S THE PLAYOFFS.

Dion Waiters

Waiters also had a family reunion this week! The Lakers are really making it hard to dislike them. His son, Dion Jr., played it kind of cool when he finally saw his dad but then he, and you when you see this, started to cry because holy it’s so hard for these families!

Rating: You thought you were going to get through this week without an emotional gut punch, sucker.

Mysterious Clanks

As I mentioned earlier the Celtics have been largely absent from all forms of social media since the ECF got underway, and especially since the Heat have gone a little, pun intended, scorched earth on ‘em. There were reports, after the Celtics fell 2-0 this week, of mysterious CLANKS coming from Boston’s locker room, plus a whole of shouting. The shouts were revealed to be Marcus Smart, reportedly, but the CLANKS have yet to be uncovered. The greedy Ghost of Christmas past? A spooky Frankenstein monster? Plumbing that should really be looked at? Rest assured, the CLANKS will be investigated.

Rating: Is it too late to nominate CLANKS for Sixth Man of the Year? I mean, depending on what happens in Game 3.

Spoiler: This article includes spoilers for The Dark Knight Rises. You’ve probably seen it, but we’re just being courteous.

Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy is beloved for taking the Caped Crusader in darker directions than ever before. But they could have been even darker. None of them broke past a PG-13, but there was one bit in The Dark Knight Rises that, had it been included in the finished version, may have pushed farther than an R.

As caught by IGN, Matthew Modine, who played Peter Foley, Commissioner Gordon’s second-in-command, appeared on CinemaBlend’s ReelBlend podcast. He wound up discussing his death scene, in which Foley is gunned down by Marion Cotillard’s Talia al Ghul. But originally the scene was far more graphic.

“[Nolan] cut my death scene out of Dark Knight Rises,” Modine explained. “Because he said it was so violent that it would have gotten an NC-17 rating.” So what happened?

“After Bane dies and Batman, Chris [Bale] gets stabbed, [Talia] gets in one of those vehicles … She starts to drive away, and I’m shooting at her. And I got run over. All it does is, it just cuts and I’m on the ground, dead. But it was so violent. The guy that was doubling me got hit by the car. They put a plexiglass thing on the front of [the car] and he got hit. They had ropes to pull him into the air, but he went up and they dropped him from about 15 feet, and the sound of his body hitting the cobblestone street in front of the New York Stock Exchange, it was sickening. And I remember I looked at Christopher Nolan when we shot it and his face was white. He was like, ‘OK, let’s move on. We got that.’ But it was like, ‘Oh my God, is that guy going to get up? Is he okay?’ But [Nolan] said that if he would have put it in the movie, it would’ve got an NC-17 rating because it was so violent.”

Perhaps Nolan was exaggerating, but it would be hard to justify making even an R-rated Dark Knight Rises just for one scene. Hell, he didn’t even include it as a Blu-ray deleted scene. Perhaps The Batman will be the one to go even darker.

(Via IGN and CinemaBlend)