Ramy, his excellent Hulu comedy that we named one of our favorite shows of the year so far, was renewed for a much-deserved third season. I would have been disappointed if the show didn’t come back, considering where it ended (sadness); also, I need to know how much of that birthday sheet cake Uncle Naseem finished. This is important.
Youssef was also nominated for a TCA (Television Critics Association) Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy, along with Pamela Adlon for Better Things, Christina Applegate for Dead to Me, Elle Fanning for The Great (she should win, IMO), Catherine O’Hara for Schitt’s Creek, and Issa Rae for Insecure. This year’s TCAs, which are voted on by more than 200 television critics and journalists from the United States and Canada, also included nominations for Watchmen, Better Call Saul, Normal People, Mrs. America, Never Have I Ever, The Mandalorian, Euphoria, Succession, and What We Do in the Shadows. Basically all of your favorite programs, and also The Morning Show.
Here’s the full list of nominees.
INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA
Cate Blanchett, “Mrs. America” – FX on Hulu
Kaitlyn Dever, “Unbelievable” – Netflix
Regina King, “Watchmen” – HBO
Mark Ruffalo, “I Know This Much Is True” – HBO
Rhea Seehorn, “Better Call Saul” – AMC
Jeremy Strong, “Succession” – HBO
Merrit Wever, “Unbelievable” – Netflix
INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY
Pamela Adlon, “Better Things” – FX
Christina Applegate, “Dead to Me” – Netflix
Elle Fanning, “The Great” – Hulu
Catherine O’Hara, “Schitt’s Creek” – Pop TV
Issa Rae, “Insecure” – HBO
Ramy Youssef, “Ramy” – Hulu
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN NEWS AND INFORMATION
“60 Minutes” – CBS (2012 Winner in Category)
“Frontline” – PBS (Eight-time Winner in Category)
“Hillary” – Hulu
“The Last Dance” – ESPN
“McMillions” – HBO
“The Rachel Maddow Show” – MSNBC
“Carmen Sandiego” – Netflix
“Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” – PBS Kids (2016 Winner in Category)
“Molly of Denali” – PBS Kids
“Odd Squad” – PBS Kids
“Wild Kratts” – PBS Kids
“Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum” – PBS Kids
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN SKETCH/VARIETY SHOWS
“A Black Lady Sketch Show” – HBO
“The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” – Comedy Central
“Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” –TBS
“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” – HBO (2019 and 2018 Winner in Category)
“Late Night with Seth Meyers” – NBC
“Saturday Night Live” – NBC
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MOVIE OR MINISERIES
“Little Fires Everywhere” – Hulu
“Mrs. America” – FX on Hulu
“Normal People” – Hulu
“The Plot Against America” – HBO
“Unbelievable” – Netflix
“Watchmen” – HBO
OUTSTANDING NEW PROGRAM
“The Great” – Hulu
“The Mandalorian” – Disney+
“The Morning Show” – AppleTV+
“Never Have I Ever” – Netflix
“Watchmen” – HBO
“Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” – NBC
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA
“Better Call Saul” – AMC (2019 Winner in Category)
“The Crown” – Netflix
“Euphoria” – HBO
“The Good Fight” – CBS All Access
“Pose” – FX
“Succession” – HBO
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY
“Better Things” – FX
“Dead to Me” – Netflix
“The Good Place” – NBC (2018 Winner in Category)
“Insecure” – HBO
“Schitt’s Creek” – Pop TV
“What We Do in the Shadows” – FX
PROGRAM OF THE YEAR
“Better Call Saul” – AMC
“Mrs. America” – FX on Hulu
“Schitt’s Creek” – Pop TV
“Succession” – HBO
“Unbelievable” – Netflix
“Watchmen” – HBO
According to the latest report from the ongoing LAPD investigation into Pop Smoke’s murder, police have confirmed the previous suspicion that the men who allegedly shot and killed the Brooklyn rapper during a home invasion did, in fact, get his address from a photo he posted earlier on Instagram. According to Los Angeles Times crime reporter Richard Winton, Winton’s LAPD contact, Captain Jon Tippet, confirmed the information this afternoon. Apparently, the alleged killers did not know Pop Smoke, and LAPD believes after interviewing them that they did get the address from his social media.
“We are confident we have the five individuals responsible for the killing of Bashar Jackson — Pop Smoke,” LAPD Capt. Jon Tippet said Thursday.
Authorities said the assailants did not know the rapper personally, “we believe that Pop Smoke posted his location on social media and that is how they found him,” Tippet said.
Earlier today, the police arrested five men in connection with the case after issuing several search warrants. The case was stalled by COVID-19 prevention precautions, but police did report shortly after Pop Smoke’s murder that they had video of several men breaking into the house Pop was renting at the time of his death. In the wake of Pop Smoke’s death, the theory arose that he had been targeted for a hit, while some of his peers commented on the dangerous nature of sharing personal information — even inadvertently — as a famous rapper.
The arrests had some coincidental timing; just one week ago, Pop Smoke’s debut album, Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon, was released via Republic Records.
As the precautionary nationwide lockdown to slow the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus dragged on, more and more people — artists and “civilians” alike — turned to alternative sources of income. One of those sources was the content subscription site OnlyFans, which is known primary for sex-related content and even received a shout-out from none other than Beyonce on Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage” remix. While both artists were invited by the platform to create accounts, they have since declined, but now one of their fellow recording artists is showing how to make hay from OnlyFans’ business model without showing off the goods.
New Orleans rapper 3D Na’Tee may not be a household name or have any Billboard charting songs, but she’s built an extensive career independently releasing music and finding innovative ways to directly market it to fans. Like many independent artists, she saw her performance money slow up in the wake of COVID precautions and so took to OnlyFans as a way to supplement her income from other revenue sources like real estate and merchandise sales. Now, her account rests in the top 10 percent of OnlyFans accounts — and she has yet to create any sexual content.
Instead, Na’Tee provides business and financial advice for fans, including advice on investing and working independently in the recording industry, access to new music, including a new album executive produced by local pop-and-R&B star PJ Morton (of Maroon 5 fame), and early glimpses at her Monday Morning Exercises freestyles, which she’s been doing for a few years taking beat suggestions from fans as a way of staying sharp lyrically.
The rapper explained how her business model led to the success of her account in a video posted to her Instagram thanking her subscribers and previewing her content. “I got a slew of emails thanking me for the information I dropped on there,” she wrote. “The first video I walked y’all through how to apply for a business line of credit and a $1000 grant (you don’t have to pay grants back). Several people applied and got the money.”
See above for the videos and subscribe to Na’Tee’s account here.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Rob McElhenney is known for his brutal sense of humor as one of the stars and creators of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, but when it comes to his latest show, Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet, the actor/writer actually wanted to make game developers “proud” more than he wanted to dunk on their entire industry.
While talking to Variety, McElhenney opened up about how a trip to a gaming studio informed his decision for where to take his main character in Mythic Quest:
McElhenney admits that he was unsure at first about making a show set in this world, but visiting producer Ubisoft’s Montreal facility allowed him to witness the “very strong-willed, passionate people” who have “equal amounts of power” but “different ideas on how to achieve their goals” when working on a game. The “inherent conflict” that comes from such an environment intrigued him, as did the fact that “because they truly are building a world, there are so many egomaniacs because they are essentially gods.”
While the setup of an egomaniacal gaming exec is rife with comedy, McElhenney and his creative team made it a point to work with actual game industry employees to not only capture the authenticity of life at a gaming studio, but to make them feel proud of their work building vast, expansive worlds that captivate millions of players.
“I wanted them to watch it and say, ‘Yes we’re proud of it. This feels like a show for us and celebrating us, instead of satirizing us,’” McElhenney told Variety.
Recently, Mythic Quest showed it clearly learned a thing or two about adapting to technological changes when the show delivered a quarantine special filmed entirely on iPhones. The Apple TV special was a hit, and its on the fly production was a technical marvel that would’ve been right at home at any gaming studio.
The dominos keep falling for college football. A day after the Ivy League decided to postpone or cancel its entire fall sports calendar, a report from Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic indicates the Big Ten will erase all non-conference games from its football schedule in an effort to solidify and delay the calendar.
The Big Ten is expected to announce today that it will go with a conference-only football schedule for this fall, a person with direct knowledge situation tells @TheAthleticCFB.
Auerbach’s initial report was soon confirmed by ESPN, which noted that this does not just apply for football — all fall sports will move to conference-only schedules.
Much like the NFL canceling two preseason games, this can be seen as one baby step toward a more significant restructuring of the football season and the NCAA’s fall sports calendar more broadly. It makes sense as a logical starting point: Playing only in-conference means less travel, which means less regional overlap and cross-contamination as well as fewer games overall. And logistically, one commissioner overseeing the whole schedule means changes are easier to account for and require less consensus.
However, unless a wholesale upheaval of the schedule soon follows, the NCAA will lose out on what could have been some awesome matchups — football especially hurts due to the conference’s standing as one of the premier leagues in the sport, meaning we’re losing games like Michigan at Washington on Sept. 5 or Ohio State at Oregon and Iowa State at Iowa on Sept. 12.
Per ESPN: “Some Big Ten schools preferred playing only conference foes with one additional non-league game, which would preserve some of its marquee non-Big Ten matchups, but there is overwhelming support for a 10-game conference-only schedule, the sources said.”
This is clearly a big dent in the NCAA’s hopes to hold sports this fall, but perhaps there remains time to etch out a plan that is financially viable for all, with the possibility remaining for a push back to the spring.
Long Beach R&B crooner Giveon just released his debut major-label EP Take Time at the end of March, which he described as “a dream come true.” While he’s not yet able to tour behind the effort, Giveon continues to captivate fans with a handful of videos. Following the release of videos accompanying “Like I Want You” and “Heartbreak Anniversary,” Giveon returns with a slice of life visual to his EP closer “Vanish.”
Directed by fellow Long Beach native Goldby7, Giveon’s “Vanish” video shows the singer smoothing things over with his partner. The singer arrives at a local pizza shop and finds a cozy booth to have a heartfelt conversation with his lover. “I say, ‘I hate you, too, and I wish you would vanish’ / But, babe, I love you and I think you understand it,” he swoons.
While Giveon just released his debut EP, the singer has spent many years honing his baritone delivery. Ahead of the project’s debut, Giveon made headlines through taking part in one of Drake’s surprise releases. The rapper tapped Giveon to croon the melodic hook on his single “Chicago Freestyle.” Drake’s cosign gave Giveon’s career a boost and helped him garner a wide audience prior to his Take Time debut.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has always felt a deep connection to racing history. His father, Dale Earnhardt Sr., was one of the most successful and beloved drivers of his era, and his grandfather, Ralph Earnhardt, was a legendary driver in his own right in the 50s and 60s.
For Junior, racing history is part of his own personal history, and it’s been a fascination he’s never been able to shake. Now that he’s retired from racing and working in the booth for NBC’s NASCAR coverage, he has more time to dive into that obsession. For years, Earnhardt has used Google Earth to find and map out old “ghost tracks,” old racetracks that have become overgrown and, in some cases, nearly unrecognizable as tracks.
That obsession has become a new series on NBC’s streaming service, Peacock, as Earnhardt and Matthew Dillner (co-host of the Dale Jr. Download podcast) explore these ghost tracks and talk to the folks that watched and participated in races at those tracks on “Lost Speedways,” premiering on July 15. Earnhardt Jr. spoke with Uproxx Sports about how his quest to find these ghost tracks became a TV show, why talking with the figures that raced there became the best part of the show, and what it was like to learn the truth behind an old family picture of his dad and grandfather racing that he never had been able to get the story behind before.
I think it was four or five years ago, we came out to your property and toured around and you talked then about your growing obsession with finding these ghost tracks. So what’s been the process of taking this concept and obsession and turning it into this show now?
Yeah, I’m telling ya, it’s been — it was nerve-wracking because you’re afraid if people are gonna wanna watch it. If people are really going to be this interested in something you have a lot of passion for, and luckily I was given a lot of confidence because of the growth of our production company, Dirty Mo Media, and the vision of the people that are in that company — Mike Davis, Matthew Dilner, just to name a couple. They gave me the confidence that we can do this. We can create a show that would allow me to go explore the tracks themselves, cause that was the real curiosity for me was to put my feet on the ground and look at the track, look at these old places. There’s a mystery and a romance and a real sorrow about it. There’s all kinds of emotions you feel when you walk into something like that, and so I was selfishly wanting just to do that and Matthew and Mike allowed the shows to tell the track’s story.
We would dig up the history of who ran there, the fans that were witnesses to the races there, what it meant to the people in the community when that track was successful and thriving. So we got to tell the story of these tracks, and I never anticipated being able to do that. I never thought that could be a component of the show, but it actually became the most valuable part of the show is when we bring in guys who were there when we’re telling the story about a certain event. We got someone who was a witness to it. So that was something that happened that I didn’t anticipate and it actually is why I’m so confident in the content now. Cause when we first started talkin’ about doing this, we’d been whispering and joking about doing a show for years, but I didn’t have the confidence to do it. But now that I see the episodes as they are in full, I feel great about it. I feel like people are really going to love this and we’ve done a great thing.
I wanted to ask about that, cause it seems, watching that Metrolina episode, the most interesting parts as a viewer were listening to those old stories. What was it like coordinating those interviews and talking with these people, some of which I’m sure you’ve heard stories about growing up and learning this history and connecting some threads of your own personal history?
We never would’ve otherwise taken the time to sit down and listen to these people tell these stories. You know, we’re busy with our own lives and doing whatever it is that’s at the top of mind at that moment, but we would never take the time to hear these stories and to understand the beauty and the racetrack itself and also the competitors and the people that raced their and the experiences they had. So when we sat down and took that time, that was really a privilege. It was a real privilege to sit in the presence of some of these people that put so much of their lives into this facility and this racetrack and into motorsports. And they’re really eager to tell that story and really eager to share what they know.
So, you kinda fall in love with the characters as they’re coming onto the shows, you kinda want to be around them more. You want to hear more stories and want to pick their brain and so I was really — each episode has that, has those characters in it that in a short period of time you fall in love with or want to be friends with and learn more about.
With the Metrolina episode in particular, it’s obviously something very close to you. Somewhere you went to watch your dad race. Learning that story about Ralph and your dad getting to actually race together and putting that together, it seemed like that was just a really cool moment to put the pieces together of a story you’ve heard hearsay for awhile. What was that like for you and how cool was it getting to hear that story?
It was really emotional, because I’d had this picture of dad and Ralph on the racetrack together. I’d had that for a really long time, and no other context about that picture or that day or what happened other than, here’s your dad and Ralph on the track together. I didn’t know where the racetrack was at. I didn’t know whether it was a hot laps practice, race, feature event, I didn’t know what it was. And I’d heard a lot of various different stories about it, and just didn’t know what to believe. You imagine after all these years there’s a lot of embellishing with a story like that, so I couldn’t believe we had a guy that could tell us that had been there.
I didn’t think I’d ever meet someone that could say, “Yeah I was there, I was at the track and I know everything that happened that day and why it happened.” But he had all the details, not only of the actual race itself and what went on on the racetrack, but why that happened, what put dad and Ralph in the same event with two different class of cars. See, Ralph was in the sportsman, which is the main class, and dad was in a modified, which is a class below that, but they had a bit of a shortage of cars so they put them both together for a feature event and there they were.
I imagine in my dad’s mind, when they came up and told him, “Hey, you’re going to run in the sportsman race with your dad,” I can’t imagine what that must’ve felt like for him. What must’ve gone through his brain? Did he say, “What? I’m gonna compete with dad?” And then when he’s out on the track and Ralph’s lapping him, pushing him around and pushing him by another competitor, what must’ve gone through his mind. What did they say to each other afterwards? What did they talk about at dinner that night? How did they tell that story when they got home to Martha Earnhardt and his brothers and sisters?
It makes your mind just take off running with all kinds of great questions and curious things, but that’s what this show does. That’s what it’s all about. The whole reason why we ended up wanting to make this show was curiosity about the tracks and what stories they can tell, and that’s a great example.
Pop Smoke’s posthumous debut album, Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon, landed Friday to a warm reception from fans and plenty of critical acclaim. Today, Complex shared its new Complex Cover profiling the creation of the 50 Cent-produced project, interviewing 40 of Pop Smoke’s collaborators for stories on how it all came together.
One of those artists interviewed is Quavo, who appears on the project three times, including on one of the more attention-getting departure’s from Pop’s signature drill sound, “West Coast Sh*t” featuring Tyga. The song, produced by Mustard, proved to be a challenge for the young Brooklynite but Quavo says his faith in Pop Smoke helped bring the song together.
“You know, Pop was a New York drill rapper. He didn’t really know how to slide on that style. But I was telling him his voice was so amazing that he could rap on anything. And he was like, “No, man. I’m going to sound like 50 Cent. I want to sound like Pop.” I said, “That’s what I want you to sound like.” And the rest was history.”
Complex also spoke to Roddy Ricch, the other Compton rapper to appear on the project on the song “The Woo,” which also features 50 Cent. “I wasn’t able to catch up with Pop when he was around,” Roddy admits, but says that he was invited to be on the album by 50 — an opportunity he couldn’t turn down. “But just the guy he was, and the guy I am, I felt like it would happen organically to meet up and talk. Then 50 invited me to be on the album, which is hard. I just wanted to be a part of something that was bigger than life. I wanted to be part of something I felt like I should have been a part of in general.”
Pop Smoke’s life came to an end earlier this year in Los Angeles, but his origins were in Brooklyn; Growing up, he spent a lot of time in his native Canarsie neighborhood. Now, people in the area are honoring the hometown hero rapper with a mural.
Los Angeles-based company Hattas Public Murals is behind the project, and they recently took to Instagram to share photos of the art, which is currently in progress. It depicts the rapper’s smiling face, backed by what looks like a starry sky and/or clouds. The post’s caption reads, “We are honored to be painting this powerful memorial for the late Pop Smoke. If you’re in Brooklyn, stop by to see it in progress at 8125 Flatlands Ave.”
It’s not clear if there is one individual artist behind the mural, but the Hattas website notes that they employ a “highly skilled team of muralists” for their works.
— POP SMOKE ALBUM OUT NOW (@PopSmokeCentral) July 8, 2020
Meanwhile, today brought some big news regarding Smoke’s murder. TMZ reports that according to LAPD sources, the department arrested five people in connection with the rapper’s death at a rented Hollywood Hills home. Three adults and two juveniles were apparently arrested, although the charges have not been revealed as of yet.
There is no playbook for how to deal with someone going on a racist rant in public. But the way server Gennica Cochran handled a bigot demeaning a table of Asian customers is something we can all applaud.
She was working as a server at a Camel Valley restaurant near San Francisco when Michael Lofthouse, CEO of tech firm Solid8, began harassing an Asian family celebrating a birthday.
Lofthouse had been belligerent all night, changing his seat and repeatedly sending back food.
After going on an expletive-laden racist rant at the family for singing “Happy Birthday,” Jordan Chan, pulled out his cellphone, began recording Lofthouse, asking him to, “Say that again.”
Karen Kicked Out Of Fancy Carmel Valley Restaurant For Being A Racist Dbag To Asian Customer!
For a few moments Lofthouse was silent, knowing that he was being filmed, but then flipped off the camera, got up from his table and said, “Trump’s going to fuck you!”
Cochran then stepped in, confidently shouting, “You need to leave right now. Get out, you are not allowed here, get out now. You do not talk to our guests like that, they are valued guests, you are not allowed here ever again!”
As Lofthouse put his jacket to leave he called the family “Asian pieces of shit.”
Cochran pointed her finger directly at Lofthouse and said, “You are not allowed here ever again.”
The video is a perfect example of someone having absolutely zero tolerance for racist behavior. She doesn’t feel the need to be gentle about her disgust with the grinning, smug Lofthouse.
Nope, she put her foot down, pointed at him and told him his actions will not be tolerated and that he needs to go immediately. Cochran was even a bit surprised with herself after seeing the video.
“To hear the emotion coming out of my voice, to see my mannerisms, it was unbelievable. It was just something that came over me and I just did what needed to be done,” she told ABC News. “I did what anybody else should or would do in that situation.”
The server says her strength came from the compassion she felt for the family.
“I felt very protective of them,” she said. “You don’t come in here and say those kinds of things to people. Especially people feel so raw coming out of quarantine. Most of these people this is the first time that they’ve been out to dinner and then you have someone attacking them it was just no, no, I don’t have time for this.”
The incident put her in touch with her mamma bear instincts.
“I’m not a mother, but I felt almost maternal,” she said. “Right, like this is my family and I will take care of them and I will do whatever I can to protect these people. To have someone hate you just because of the way that you look, that’s beyond me. I don’t understand it.”
After the incident, Lofthouse apologized for his behavior.
“My behavior in the video is appalling. This was clearly a moment where I lost control and made incredibly hurtful and divisive comments,” Lofthouse said.
“I would like to deeply apologize to the Chan family. I can only imagine the stress and pain they feel,” he added.
Chan isn’t buying the apology and blames Donald Trump for inciting his racist tirade. “He’s just saving face. I think he really meant what he said and what he did,” Chan told The Washington Post.
“The fact that Donald Trump is our president … gives racists a platform and amplifies voices of hate,” she wrote. “The surfacing of racists is so prevalent right now, even in such an ethnically/culturally diverse and liberal state like California, because Trump HIMSELF uses his position to incite racial tension.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Trump has routinely called the virus the “China Virus” and the “Kung-Flu.”
Cochran’s behavior in the face of disgusting racism that night is a perfect display of the power of direct action. Her handling of the situation has won her tens of thousands of dollars in donations.
A GoFundMe campaign entitled, “A Bg Tip for an everyday Hero” started by Jeremy Stephens, a complete stranger inspired by her actions, has already earned her $41,000 in “tips.”
The server and yoga instructor believes that her actions on that day instilled an attitude she will hold to forever. “It’s not something that I will condone ever again, being silent,” she said.
After seeing how she handled the situation, there’s no doubt she’s inspired countless others to take the same stance.
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