Over his lengthy career, Snoop Dogg has cemented himself as an acclaimed rapper, a philanthropist, and an unlikely gastronomist. The rapper hosted a series of weekly dinners with TV cooking show host Martha Stewart in 2016, proving his affection for cooking. Now, the rapper is taking his love of food one step further and creating his own wine brand: Snoop Dogg announced a partnership with Australian winemakers 19 Crimes.

The rapper’s Snoop Cali Red will be available everywhere this summer. According to press materials, the Snoop Cali Red is the first 19 Crimes wine to be bottled in California. Launching nationwide in July, Snoop’s wine is a blend of Syrah, Zinfandel, and Merlot. “I’ve been a fan of this wine and I’m excited to unveil my ‘Snoop Cali Red’ this summer and share the experience with all my fans,” Snoop said in a statement. “It’s one of the most successful brands in the market, so I’m more than eager to bring this collaboration to the world!”

Treasury Wine Estates marketing vice president John Wardley echoed the rapper’s excitement. “Snoop Dogg, an entertainment and California icon, is the perfect partner for 19 Crimes Snoop Cali Red,” Wardley said. “Snoop embodies the spirit of 19 Crimes — rule breaking, culture creating and overcoming adversity. We are truly excited to partner with Snoop and welcome him to the 19 Crimes family.”

Check out the Snoop Cali Red bottle above.

Turn on all the lights before you watch the latest episode of UPROXX Sessions, because Dana Dentata’s dark performance of her song “Texted” is about as unsettling as it gets. The latest episode of our live performance show turns the Bathroom into a murder scene as Dana flashes her gold grill at the camera, brandishes a bloody shovel, and lords it over a body laid out on the floor. The femme fatale’s new song details the unfortunate circumstances with ominous wit and an eerie soundtrack.

Dana Dentata is a Toronto-raised, LA-based goth-rap rulebreaker who got her initial start as a member of Dentata, a metal band from which she borrows her stage name and general artistic persona. Receiving early-career co-signs from both Marilyn Manson and Kanye West, her music is best described as the closest thing to a platonic ideal a combination of the two superstars’ music could get. Despite the spooky vibes, she wants her music to empower people — especially women — even as she embraces the bloody imagery of her metal and horrorcore hip-hop forebears. Her style may seem to be a far cry from her Sessions predecessors 1TakeJay and idontknowJeffery, but like each of them, she infuses her set with her own distinctive personality.

Watch Dana Dentata’s performance above.

UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s new performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too.

In a new couch gag for this Sunday’s episode, The Simpsons appears to be giving a nod to audiences who are finding ways to pass the time while bunkered at home.

The longer than usual opening segment features Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie going wild in a virtual reality world that starts with Homer diving in, Fortnite-style, to steal a plane from Ned Flanders, which he then uses to buzz the Springfield nuclear plant, presumably to stick it to his boss Mr. Burns. From there, we catch Bart snowboarding out of a helicopter and writing on the side of a mountain in a nod to his now 30-year-old chalkboard gag in the opening credits.

Meanwhile, Marge catches some waves (Who knew she likes to surf?), Lisa explores the ocean floor where she meets up with some whales, and Maggie tears up the town on a revved up tricycle. It seems like the whole family is making the most of their VR experience while responsibly self-isolating like the responsible Springfield citizens that they are. However, things soon go south for Homer as the tail of his plane explodes causing his plane to crash, and that’s apparently enough VR for him as he rips off his headset and returns to his one true love: TV.

The couch gag marks a decidedly less controversial moment for The Simpsons during the global pandemic. An old joke from a ’90s episode recently became the subject of a racially-insensitive viral meme that prompted a former Simpsons writer to denounce it in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

In lighter, less health crisis-based news, Disney+ has confirmed that it will keep its promise to fans by making classic episodes of The Simpsons available in their original aspect ratio by the end of May.

Those of us who are Gen X or older probably grew up watching M*A*S*H* or reruns of M*A*S*H* on television. (For you youngsters out there, M*A*S*H*—which stands for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital—was a hilarious sitcom about a medical unit in the Korean War. That probably sounds weird and wrong, but it worked.)

Facebook user Frank Vaccariello shared a compilation of M*A*S*H* scenes that perfectly reflect various elements of the coronavirus pandemic, which is impressive considering the fact that the show, which ran for 11 seasons, had 256 episodes.

“I have sincerely believed for a long time that whatever issue life puts in front of us M*A*S*H* had a solution,” Vaccariello wrote. “I had some pent up creative energy today, so I did this while you were all cleaning your closets and such…lol.”

It appears Vaccariello is right. From hand-washing to social distancing to face-touching to toilet paper hoarding, there’s a M*A*S*H* scene to match everything we’re going through. Enjoy this masterful M*A*S*H*. mash-up.

View Entire Post ›

Kehlani knows what it’s like to date in the public eye. The singer was in a relationship with YG for a period of time and recorded a with the rapper before calling it quits when a fan caught him at a club with another woman. Kehlani seemingly addressed the public split with her track “Valentine’s Day (Shameful).” She also previously dated NBA star Kyrie Irving. But now, the singer is fed up with opinions about her love life. Kehlani addresses her public criticism with her smooth track “Everybody’s Business.”

Shot at her home during quarantine, Kehlani’s “Everybody’s Business” video touts the singer in her backyard sporting a purple power suit. With headphones and a mic, Kehlani passionately delivers each line and confronts gossip about her life. “I hear every word they talk / Tried not to care at all / I know it’s frontin’, don’t know me from nothin’ / Still I need to shake it off / I know I can take it all / I know they frontin,’” she sings.

The track itself is a re-work of Pharell’s hit track “Frontin’” with Jay-Z. Upon the song’s release, she called the Pharell track her “favorite.”

Kehlani’s video is her second shot by herself in quarantine. Ahead of “Everybody’s Business,” Kehlani essentially broke the internet with her racy “Toxic” video.

Listen to “Everybody’s Business” above.

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

100 Gecs have never been a group to operate under any of the music industry’s norms. They’re not about to start doing so during this pandemic: The duo has decided to host an online livestream music festival, and they will be doing so on Minecraft.

“Square Garden” is set to go down on April 24 from 6 to 10 p.m. EST, and 100 Gecs have instructions on their website about how to join the right Minecraft server and enjoy the performance in game. For those unable or unwilling to check out the show in Minecraft, the group is also livestreaming the event on YouTube and Twitch. The show is in support of Feeding America and is presented by Open Pit.

They’re not the only performers set to participate. In fact, they’ve wrangled a pretty sweet lineup: Also performing will be Charli XCX, Kero Kero Bonito, Cashmere Cat, and even Parry Gripp (remember “Raining Tacos” and “Hamster On A Piano (Eating Popcorn)“?). Charli and Kero Kero Bonito’s inclusion isn’t exactly surprising, considering they, along with Rico Nasty, collaborated with 100 Gecs on “Ringtone Remix.”

Learn more about “Square Garden” on the 100 Gecs website.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Late-night television is one of the many segments of the entertainment industry to shift its business model, with well-known hosts like Jimmy Fallon, Trevor Noah, and more conducting their interviews via video call from the safety of social isolation. Likewise, the stars that they call have become much more outspoken about inequality and the shortcomings of our social systems in the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, which has affected nearly everyone — although it’s definitely hurt the middle class much more.

The latest guest on The Tonight Show, Pharrell, spoke to this disparity during his video call with host Jimmy Fallon, addressing the historical inequity in healthcare availability that has made the COVID crisis more difficult for people of color. Pharrell also addressed the misconceptions surrounding the disproportionate effect the coronavirus’ spread has had on communities of color, doing his best to dispel some of the myths that have cropped up in its wake.

“There’s this narrative that people who look like me — darker or light, brown and Black folks — that we don’t know how to take care of ourselves,” he said. “We’re twice as likely to get asthma and all these other crazy things and it’s not that. It’s just that the healthcare is disproportionate and you’re seeing the effects of that right now in the way that this thing is spreading and who’s getting the help, how they’re getting the help: There’s access. There’s historical injustices with healthcare with people of color. Those things systemically contribute to the disproportionate access. This is definitely affecting people of color in a different way.”

Pharrell thanked Jimmy for allowing him to use the platform to speak about the topic, because while it’s been touched upon in other sources, the vast majority of Americans won’t hear this reasoning. Pharrell also explained the origins of his Something In The Water Festival and how he’s been staving off quarantine boredom.

Watch Pharrell’s full interview above.

The NBA G League is showing it is serious about creating a legitimate path for amateur players to bridge the gap between high school and the pros, and five-star recruit Jalen Green will become the first to try it out. After strongly considering signing Auburn and Memphis, the NBA added several new elements to the G League Select Contract that ultimately enticed Green to opt out of college.

“I wanted to get better overall and prepare myself for the NBA because that’s my ultimate goal,” Green told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. “Everything was planned out right and set up for me to succeed.”

Those plans include the option to use a full scholarship given out by the NBA, a $500,000 salary, and a newly formed Select Team, which The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported will likely be put in southern California and play an abbreviated 20-game schedule (the G League usually plays 50 games). Green will also, as a professional athlete, be eligible to earn sponsorship money, while college athletes cannot.

Green won’t be the only blue-chip 2020 recruit on the select team, as five-star forward and former Michigan commit Isaiah Todd will join him.

According to a press release from the G League, “details of the new team Green will play for, which will be unaffiliated with any existing NBA G League franchise or NBA team, are forthcoming.” Among the questions that will be ironed out by NBA commissioner Adam Silver and G League president Shareef Abdur-Rahim is who else fills out the Select Team roster, who their competition is during the abbreviated schedule, and what facilities the team will use.

Currently, the Lakers’ and Clippers’ affiliates reside in South Bay and Ontario, respectively, so perhaps the Select Team will work with those franchises to use their facilities. The NBA’s obvious commitment to this plan could mean they invest in a new, more permanent facility elsewhere in southern California.

The NBA and its teams are awaiting an agreement with the NCAA on a reduction in the age limit whereupon young players can turn pro, from 19 back down to 18. The latest reporting has the 2022 NBA Draft as the soonest such a change might happen, meaning this Select Team plan could be in place for multiple seasons. Even if players are soon able to jump from preps to the pros, the Select Team may remain a viable option based on the immense investment the NBA is putting into it.

Life in quarantine is hard; you’ve got to find ways to fight the boredom and stay entertained while self-isolating indoors. Fortunately, social media and the internet have provided a wealth of options, from living room concerts to beat battles curated by one of hip-hop’s premiere producers. Speaking of “premiere” producers and beat battles, one of the challengers from the most recent Verzuz battle is joining Uproxx’s own entry to the canon of quarantine entertainment as our Brooklyn-bred host with the most takes his show to the streams.

That’s right, People’s Party With Talib Kweli is streaming live this week on Instagram with special guest RZA. RZA, of course, is hot off the eye-opening beat battle with DJ Premier this past weekend and ready to talk all things beats, rhymes, and hip-hop with Kweli — no studio set, no desk, no problem. RZA will also talk meditation, his battle with Premier, and his upcoming projects, along with answering fan questions from the comments.

The show is set to go live Friday, April 17 at 7pm EST/4pm PST on @UPROXX on Instagram.

People’s Party is a weekly interview show hosted by Talib Kweli with big-name guests exploring hip-hop, culture, and politics. Subscribe via Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.