Category: Viral

Amid the nationwide protests that followed the death of George Floyd earlier this summer, players around the league started ramping up their involvement in social causes, a trend that carried all the way to recent boycott in Orlando, during which teams put pressure on the league and its owners to use their money and leverage to enact change.

LeBron James has been one of the most active and outspoken supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement, most notably spearheading a voting rights initiative called More Than A Vote that is designed to educate people in poor and minority communities about voter suppression tactics and provide more opportunities to have their voice heard and their vote counted.

The league itself joined that cause as part of their new social justice campaign, pledging to transform team-owned arenas into voting sites for the upcoming presidential election in November. Now, Ticketmaster parent company Live Nation has joined forces with More Than A Vote to do the same with concert venues around the country.

Via Brian McCollum of The Detroit Free Press:

The company will announce Wednesday that Live Nation venues in Los Angeles (the Wiltern and Hollywood Palladium), Philadelphia (the Fillmore), Atlanta (Buckhead Theatre) and Austin (Emo’s) are confirmed to serve as voting sites. Venues continue to be vetted in other markets.

“One of the things we kept hearing, because the pandemic is going on, was that a lot of smaller (polling places) would not be made available for voting,” said Tom See, chief operating officer of Live Nation’s U.S. venue division. “We said: ‘Wait a second, we’ve got 100-plus large locations across the country sitting empty right now. Why not offer them up as places for people to vote?’ That was the impetus — to solve a need.”

Live Nation has said it hopes this signals to other venue owners around the country that they can re-purpose their sites for the election as well. In addition, the company is offering employees paid time off to work at these voting stations on election day.

Because of the pandemic, and because of nationwide voter suppression tactics, safe and easy access to voting sites is restricted in many poor communities. Live Nation and More Than A Vote have launched a tremendous campaign that will help bring some fairness and validity back to the democratic process.

(The Detroit Free Press🙂

After mostly staying quiet since the release earlier this year of his latest project, HIStory, Lost Pages, YFN Lucci is now back in the news after a calamitous event on a recent music video shoot. According to TMZ, Lucci was present during a shoot for an unknown song — it’s still not known if it was one of his — when he was handed a firearm as part of the video. The Atlanta-born rapper was apparently unaware that the firearm was loaded with real bullets, rather than blanks, which was unfortunate as he accidentally fired off a live round.

Fortunately, no one on set was injured, but the gunshot left a hole in the studio floor. DJ Skeme later shared footage of the incident with Lucci on Twitter, with the caption, “Somebody teach ya boy Lucci some gun safety.”

This is not the first time YFN Lucci has dealt with a firearm issue on the set of a music video. Back in May 2019, a teenager was reportedly injured after 21 gunshots were fired on at the set. The kid’s thumb was grazed but it remains unknown if he was taken to the hospital for his injuries.

YFN Lucci is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Now that we’re far from Labor Day and the only thing standing between now and Halloween is, well, nothing, things are finally starting to pick up in the world of sneakers and apparel. This week brings two new Yeezys, a link-up between Converse and Brixton-designer Samuel Ross’ A-Cold-Wall, and a new sneaker brand makes its SNX DLX debut. On the apparel end, we have season-appropriate collections from Supreme, Teddy Fresh, and Palace, which have all settled into collections that (finally) don’t include any summer basics, unless of course, you consider shorts summer clothes and not pandemic-era workwear.

Here are the week’s best sneaker and apparel releases, but before diving in, remember that we’re almost at year’s end, so if you’ve been playing it safe waiting until brands start unloading their best products — that moment is now!

Adidas YEEZY BOOST 380 Pepper/Pepper RF

Kanye West is at his most endearing when he is making weird as hell alien shoes instead of the hundreds of other things he gets up to in a single week. This week, Ye will drop two versions of Yeezy Supply’s weirdest silhouette the 380 in reflective and non-reflective iterations.

The new colorway, Pepper — which makes us question whether Kanye has ever actually seen pepper — features a tan and beige upper and sits atop a smokey grey BOOST midsole.

The Adidas YEEZY Boost 380 is set to drop on September 18th in the Pepper iteration, and September 19th for the reflective addition. The sneakers will retail for $230 and $250 respectively. Pick up a pair at the Adidas online store or through Yeezy Supply.

A-Cold-Wall x Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Lugged/ERX

When A-Cold-Wall’s Samuel Ross linked up for a collaboration with Converse, he didn’t simply slap his label name on an already classic silhouette, he tried to reimagine a classic.

“One of my earliest memories of Converse is owning a pair of navy All-Stars at age 14,” said Ross in a press release on the collaboration, “I was traveling to the Caribbean a lot and took those shoes on numerous hikes and across mountain trails… the experience of my childhood affected this idea of changing the All-Star into something that is more hard-wearing.”

The result is the Chuck Taylor All Star Lugged — a visibly utilitarian iteration of the Chuck Taylor that boasts tougher construction, increased foot stability, and water-resistant mudguards — it’s a Chuck Taylor for the trail! Ross also gave the ERX a refresh, adding textured suede, debossed detailing, and a rugged earthy colorway.

The A-Cold-Wall x Converse collection dropped at the A-Cold-Wall webstore on September 14th and will receive a wider release at the Converse webstore on Septeber 17th. The Chuck Taylors retail for $140 and the ERX retails for $160.

Cariuma CATIBA Skate Pro

Making their SNX DLX debut, Brazil-based label Cariuma’s CATIBA Skate Pro is a performance-based skate shoe that is sustainably produced. Developed in partnership with pro skaters like Steve Berra, the CATIBA Skate Pro was built to weather the thrashing of street skating and is made from premium natural materials like raw rubber for a slip-resistant sole, organic cotton triple stitched for extra durability, premium responsibly sourced suede, and a Mamona oil cork-based insole that provides better shock absorption.

With an eye toward sustainability, we’re loving this balance of sustainability and performance that Cariuma has going for them in the CATIBA Skate Pro.

The Cariuma Skate Pro is out now for a retail price of $89. Pick up a pair at the Cariuma webstore.

Nike Dunk High Spartan Green

We’re not sure if we’re just burned out in a year that has been packed with must-own Nike Dunk Lows, but this pair of Spartan Green high top Dunks is speaking to us this week. Inspired in part by the Michigan State Spartans, this colorway features a full-grain leather upper with a mesh tongue and classic vintage-inspired tooling, resulting in a super clean eye-catching pair of one of Nike’s greatest silhouettes.

The Nike Dunk High Spartan Greens are set to drop on September 18th for a retail price of $120. Pick up a pair through the Nike SNKRS app, the shoes drop at 7:00 AM.

Fragment Design x Nike Air Jordan 3

Designed by Fragment label head Hiroshi Fujiwara, this iteration of the Air Jordan 3 features a smoothed out Orca-colored upper, offering a flatter take on the usual Jordan 3 design. Other changes include a printed SKU on the midsole and Fragment branding on the heel overlayed by a translucent Jumpman logo.

It’s a minimalist take on a classic and it really works to show the perfection that is the Jordan 3 silhouette, one of Tinker Hatfield’s finest.

The Fragment Design x Nike Air Jordan 3 is set to drop on September 17th for a retail price of $200. Pick up a pair through the Nike SNKRS app.

Supreme x Yohji Yamamoto Fall/Winter 2020 Collection

Supreme is killing it so far this fall season and this collaborative collection with legendary Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto is one of Supreme’s cooler link-ups this year after some high profile collaborations with Levi, Nike, and the other usual suspects.

The collection consists of season staples like down jackets, parkas, hoodies, and crewnecks but features a few surprises like the wool suit or the leatherwork jacket, with a few pieces featuring spray-painted graphics courtesy of Sancheeto, imagery from Peter Saville, and art by Yuuka Asakura.

This is the sort of high-art collaboration that made Supreme cool in the first place, so we’re happy to see them close out the year with some callbacks to their roots.

The Supreme x Yohji Yamamoto FW2020 collection is set to drop on September 17th. Shop the looks at the Supreme online store.

Teddy Fresh September Collection

Teddy Fresh is delivering a new collection of autumn essentials this Thursday, including the sketchbook-inspired “Meadows Tee,” featuring drawings by label designer Hila Klein. Rounding out the collection is a teddy-lined jacket, shorts, and a moody turquoise and black striped t-shirt.

The Teddy Fresh September Collection is set to drop at 10 am PST on Thursday, September 17th. Shop the looks at the Teddy Fresh Webstore.

Palace x Happy Mondays Fall 2020 Capsule

This week, Palace will debut a Madchester Baggy-inspired capsule collection made in collaboration with late ’80s legends The Happy Mondays. Does anyone reading this article even know what Madchester is? For those not in the know, imagine a super British mix of funk music, house music, and ‘60s psychedelia, and you’ve got Madchester! If that sounds unconvincing, just give The Stone Roses “Fools Gold” a listen.

A link-up between Palace and Happy Mondays makes sense, as the former’s aesthetic is almost entirely influenced by early ’90s UK and skate culture — looks influenced by bands like The Happy Mondays. The collection consists of button-up-shirts, graphic tees, all-over-print Harrington Jackets, and of course, bucket hats. Because nothing says “UK rave” like a bucket hat.

The Palace x Happy Mondays Fall 2020 capsule collection is set to drop as part of Palace’s Week 7 drop on September 18th. Shop the looks at the Palace webstore.

As he continues work on his upcoming sixth album, Drake has lost one of his early affiliates. Dolla Bill, a longtime member of Drake’s label and OVO collective, recently passed away from causes that are currently unknown. He took a moment to memorialize Dolla Bill, sharing a photo and a memoriam on Instagram.

“Known you for so many years and since day one you came around with a smile and positive words for me and your main priority was ALWAYS your family and the guys,” Drake wrote alongside a photo of him and Dolla Bill. “You will be missed dearly brother RIP DOLLA BILL.” Drake also shared a picture of Dolla Bill and his son on his Instagram story with the message, “RIP a real one Dolla Bill.”

Another OVO affiliate, Chubbs, also honored Dolla Bill. “I’m gonna miss you brother. Your loyalty is unmatched I can never repay you for giving me a way out when nobody else wanted to,” Chubbs wrote in an Instagram post that used the same picture Drake shared to his Instagram story. “I took that and had enough bread to go see Drizzy when the opportunity came. I owe you so much. Your son is my son!! I hate we can’t grow old together. I can write for days but you know what I’m saying. I love you bro.”

Retribution has been wreaking havoc on WWE Raw (and a couple of times on Smackdown) for a while now, but we still don’t know anything about them. They’ve started cutting promos, but they’re still wearing those black masks with their all-black outfits, and they haven’t had an actual match. Retribution segments tend to involve a bunch of extras, making it hard to tell how big the group is supposed to be. Recently, however, five members have begun to emerge as the core of the group. Reports have come out regarding who those five are, and the names do make some sense.

According to Post Wrestling, the five central members of Retribution are the ones who appeared in the promo segment on Raw this week. If you look at that video, it’s pretty easy to recognize them.

On the left is Shane Thorne, once a member of TM61 (aka The Mighty) with his since-released partner Nick Miller. In back of the group is Dio Maddin, who was part of the Raw announce team for a few months last fall, before returning to NXT to get back in the ring. In front of Dio is Mercedes Martinez, indie vet and former Mae Young Classic competitor who just got booted from the Robert Stone Brand after losing a cage match to Rhea Ripley. Next to her is Mia Yim, who has been working as hard as anybody in NXT for the past few years, without ever being treated like a serious title contender. And finally, on the right is Dominik Dijakovic, former best frenemy of Keith Lee and noted Very Large Man. Dijakovic and Martinez were the two who spoke in the segment.

The promo started out being sort of broadly about letting go of the WWE dream and believing that the company is holding you back, but then it gets kind of abstract right at the end when Dominik starts talking about enjoying oblivion or whatever. But the main point is clearly that they don’t like WWE, and therefore don’t like anybody who sides with WWE, which apparently includes all the wrestlers who aren’t wearing black masks and hoodies. It’s really pretty typical heel faction stuff, with the lightest antifa gloss painted over it.

A lot of people thought Retribution would be made up of wrestlers who WWE laid off back in April. That would make narrative sense, although it might feel a little gross, and at the end of the day I just don’t know that anybody really wants a faction made up of people who got laid off in April and haven’t already signed with Impact or AEW. When people were fantasy booking that version of Retribution, I’m pretty sure they were picturing Rusev pulling one of those masks off, and it definitely wouldn’t have revealed bleach blond hair and Mickey Mouse couture.

So now of course the big question is, does this go anywhere? Although a lot of their segments have been lackluster up to now, I don’t think it would be impossible to build them up as a credible threat, especially with five performers so talented doing the in-ring work that surely has to come eventually. Still, the next thing that needs to happen right now is their unmasking. The Wrestling Observer has reported that WWE has considered keeping them masked for months to come, which was already a terrible idea, and would be a disaster now that their names have leaked out.

It’s time for WWE to decide what they ultimately want Retribution to be, and work on making them that. The one thing they can’t be anymore is a mystery.

Television was one industry that quickly learned to adapt to the still raging pandemic, but so far there hasn’t too many of one kind of program: awards shows. Though the BET Awards went off largely without a hitch in late August, the Emmys are an affair with even more moving parts. But instead of being a pre-recorded quarantine program, like the Parks and Recreation virtual reunion, they’re going to do it almost entirely live. If that sounds like a disaster waiting to happen, well, those behind it agree.

“Things are going to go wrong,” Ian Stewart, one of the show’s producers, told journalists, as per The Wrap. “It’s never been done before… so things aren’t going to work perfectly all the time, and I think that’s part of the endearment of it. We’ve got to try. We’re going to try our best.”

So what exactly is the game plan? It involves what are essentially 130 care packages being sent to the many participants, from nominees to hosts. Inside is camera equipment: cameras, monitors, ring lights, and computers, mailed out to 20 cities in 10 countries. They’ll be at the mercy of not only talent, who will have to learn how to work equipment, but with internet connections, plus the fires that have consumed California of late, which could affect nearby communications towers.

“It’s sort of like trying to watch 130 sports matches at the same time. You have so many things coming in and so many things that can stop coming in,” Stewart said. “These are not places that are wired to do a sports match, they’re wired to be where you have your dinner.”

One person inspiring confidence? The show’s seasoned host, Jimmy Kimmel. “The good thing is,” Stewart said, “We’ve got Jimmy Kimmel, who loves live TV and the chaos of live TV. I think he’s actually hoping things do go wrong, to tell you the truth.”

Whether this turns out to have a hiccup here and there or if it’s a non-stop train wreck that turns off viewers to pandemic awards shows altogether remains to be seen. But Stewart and Hudlin decided to being bold was better than being safe.

“We decided let’s not do the easy route here, the sanitized route here, and do lots of prerecorded things and put them all together, bolt them back to back and put out something that’s sort of generic,” Stewart said. “A stumbling block can be a stepping stone depending how you use it. This is a time to be a bit loose and have some fun… Anything that we can do live, we will do live.”

According to Variety, the epic list of talent booked for the show include [deep breath]: Laverne Cox, Sterling K. Brown, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Count von Count, Jason Bateman, Morgan Freeman, Ilana Glazer, Abbi Jacobson, D-Nice, Randall Park, RuPaul, Patrick Stewart and Jason Sudeikis. There will also be appearances from Anthony Anderson, America Ferrera, Issa Rae, Gabrielle Union, J.J. Watt, Lena Waithe and Oprah Winfrey. Hopefully everyone reads the equipment instructions before things start Sunday night.

The 20202 Emmy Awards will air on Sunday, September 20 at 8pm on ABC.

(Via The Wrap and Variety)

On a day where Sony finally revealed the release date and price of the PlayStation 5, they kicked off the event with a trailer of a familiar friend — Final Fantasy.

Square Enix released a five-minute trailer with a smattering of callbacks to the series such as chocobos and familiar characters like Shiva. Some more traditional RPG callbacks were inserted as it appears a few characters are related and only distinguishable by their facial markings.

Judging from a few scenes of combat, the sixteenth edition of Final Fantasy is going with more of an action RPG model similar to what gamers saw in the Final Fantasy VII remake that dropped earlier this year, rather than the traditional JRPG style that the franchise is traditionally known for.

Final Fantasy being an “exclusive” property for Sony is nothing new as Final Fantasies 7 through 13 all were initially released on PlayStation consoles and then later ported to other platforms. What may make this a tad more confusing for gamers is that it’s not known yet whether this is a single player adventure or the successor to the vastly successful MMORPG Final Fantasy 14.

There wasn’t a release date attached to the trailer, but it’s safe to assume that the game won’t be released until the Holiday 2021 window at the earliest. Until we get some new information, it might be for the best to get a few more viewings of the trailer on a loop.

The wildfires that have ravaged the west coast over the past two months have burned millions of acres, claimed over 30 lives, and forced thousands to live in evacuation shelters.

The fires have also caused unimaginable damage to the area’s wildlife.

Critical populations of endangered species and native habitats may take years to recover.

“Some of these places we set aside may be fundamentally impacted by climate change and may not be able to come back,” Amy Windrope, deputy director of Washington’s Department of Fish and Wildlife,” said according to The New York Times. “That’s just a reality.”

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Out of all the death and destruction comes a wonderful story out of Jamul, California, outside of San Diego.

Over twenty years ago, Patty Hyslop started the Hyslop Horse Haven to care for abused and neglected horses. Hyslop sufferers from multiple sclerosis and, at one point, was paralyzed, but she believes her love for horses has helped her condition improve.

The sanctuary also provides horseback riding lessons for children.

On September 5, as the Valley Fire raged through the area, forcing Hyslop to evacuate her ranch, leaving the horses behind.

“It was one of the scariest things that we’ve ever been through,” Hyslop told FOX 5.

“When I saw those hundred-foot flames coming at us … I (thought I) was going to come back the next day to dead horses or severely burnt horses. And if they had died, I think I would’ve died with them. My heart would have just broken,” she continued.

via GoFundMe

After the fire made its way through the area, Hyslop returned to her horse haven fearing the worst. But she was shocked to find that all 20 of her horses survived.

Hyslop belives the animals were saved by “horse angels.”

Unfortunately, the stable didn’t have such luck. The entire sanctuary was reduced to ash and debris. Eight sheds with thousands of dollars worth of medications, tack, and supplies were brunt to the ground. As was Hyslop’s golf cart and trailers for the sanctuary’s volunteers.

via Fox 5 San Diego

“My shed alone, there was probably $10,000 worth of tack and medications feed everything inside and it’s just all gone,” said Hope Gilces, Hyslop’s niece.

The horses have been transferred to temporary facilities while Hyslop and her team work to get the sanctuary back into order. Even though her sanctuary has suffered a massive setback, she still vows to rescue even more horses, including those impacted by the blaze.

A GoFundMe campaign has been established to help rebuild the sanctuary.

“The ranch is going to be in need of feed, medicine, care equipment, and all items needed for riding lessons (saddles, blankets, tack, etc),” the campaign reads. “They will need to rebuild storage units and replace machinery that didn’t survive the fire.”

Let’s hope Hyslop’s horse angels come through again and help her get the funding she needs to continue her important work.

While Xbox was first to make an official announcement on the release date and pricing for its next-generation consoles — the Series X and smaller, cheaper digital-only Series S — which left gamers turning to PlayStation for details on the PS5.

On Wednesday, Sony hosted a PlayStation reveal event where they debuted some new games, like the new Harry Potter open-world RPG Hogwarts Legacy, a first-look at Final Fantasy XVI, and extended gameplay from Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. They also, finally, offered pricing and release details for the two PS5s.

The consoles will come out on November 12 in the United States (and other major international markets like Japan, Canada, and Mexico) and the main console will cost $499.99, while the digital only edition will cost $399.99.

That puts the PS5 at the same price point as the Xbox Series X, while the digital only edition is $100 more than the digital only Series S, it isn’t a smaller console like Xbox and should have similar storage capacity, just without the Blu-Ray disc drive. That the PS5 costs the same as the Xbox Series X comes as a bit of a surprise, as there was speculation it could cost more, but it will certainly make for some difficult decisions for those trying to decide between the two next-generation consoles as they both will run right on $499 before tax.

Sony announced a follow-up to its acclaimed Marvel’s Spider-Man game earlier this year, revealing that Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales will come out sometime later this year for PlayStation consoles. It’s a highly-anticipated release, one that centers on one of Peter Parker’s pals from the first game, and on Wednesday afternoon, we got a glimpse into what the game will look like.

Sony held a major PlayStation 5 reveal event on Wednesday, and early on, we saw a seven and a half minute trailer, one which shows a cut scene in which Miles walks around his environment, and after a brief interjection from Insomniac Games creative director Brian Horton, showed Miles in combat against Roxxon.

Beyond the look at how the game will play, it was announced that the game will come out sometime during the holiday season of 2020, which would put its release date right around the same time as the rumored release date for the new console. Plenty of details are still to be determined — it’s unclear if Spider-Man will appear in the game in any capacity, we still don’t know an exact date, and the full plot details remain up in the air — but based on the bits that we know, it looks like Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales has what it takes to be a worthy success to the original game.