It’s a little hard to determine whether there is a trend in Americans relocating to other countries. Still, approximate figures show that the number of U.S. citizens living abroad has just about doubled since 1999, with the number jumping from 4.1 million to 8 million.
In a recent article for Business Insider, Brooke Black shared that she and her family relocated to Denmark in 2020 and one of the biggest reasons they have decided to stay is that it feels much safer. Black has a husband and two young daughters.
“Overall, Denmark is a safe place, and Danes value trust,” she wrote. “Crime is rare — I rarely see police cars — and gun control is strict. We feel very safe here, which was a major factor in choosing to stay in Denmark.” When you crunch the numbers, Denmark is much safer than the United States. According to Nationmaster, America has 7 times more guns, 6 times more homicides and 4 times more rapes.
Back in 2020, shortly after Black had her second child during the pandemic. Her family decided to leave Los Angeles for two weeks because it was a COVID-19 hotspot and spend two weeks in Denmark with her husband’s family. What started as a 2-week trip became permanent.
Black finds it is much easier to take care of young children in Denmark because of its shorter work weeks. “Because the Danish workweek is 37 hours, most parents pick up their kids by 4 pm at the latest on most weekdays and even earlier on Fridays,” she wrote for Business Insider. “I work for a Danish company and can easily leave in time for pickup. In LA, I would rush across town to get my kid at 5:30 pm, leaving just enough time for a bath and bedtime. I cherish the time I get with my kids now.”
“I’m very grateful for that because that time isn’t coming back,” she wrote on LinkedIn.
Black works for Podimo, an app that publishes over 1,000 exclusive podcasts and 70,000 audiobook titles.
Black isn’t the only American who has found a safer home living in Europe. Earlier this year, Upworthy shared the story of Luna Ashley Santel, her husband and young daughter, who left St. Louis, Missouri for Spain.
Here’s what shifted for him. I’m sure this’ll piss the right people off. No pun intended. #movingabroad #spaindigitalnomadvisa #movingabroadwithpets #movingtospainwithkids
After relocating to Spain, they realized that they had been carrying an invisible mental load while living in America. One day, while sitting in a busy cafè, which would have made them nervous in St. Louis, the couple realized that none of the people milling about had guns.
At this moment, Santel’s husband realized that living in America caused him to be on alert whenever he was out in public. A feeling he never got in Spain. “And I realized this weight that I had been carrying around my whole life wasn’t necessary. Like what we think is normal is not normal,” he said.
Like virtually any aspect of parenting, co-sleeping, aka bed sharing, can be a bit of a controversial topic.
Sleeping together as a singular family unit is a much older practice, dating as far back as the Medieval Era—when sleeping separately was both unsafe and unattainable for most.
Today, it is generally recommended to have children sleeping on their own by the age of five, although plenty of parents will still share a bed with their 12 to 13-year-olds from time to time. In other words, there are no hard and fast rules—though many have strong opinions.
And while it certainly isn’t mainstream anymore, some families opt for the more classic sleeping approach.
In a video posted to TikTok, Brandon Deal and his 12-year-old daughter, McKenzi, show their unconventional sleeping layout.
“When people find out that we’re a co-sleeping family, they think we all pile up on one bed. That is not the case,” Brandon says, explaining that he, his wife Megan, and their smaller daughter Sarah Grace share a king size bed, while McKenzi sleeps in her own twin size bed placed at the foot of the king-sized bed.
Brandon asks his daughter why she sleeps in the twin bed in their bedroom, to which she replies, “I don’t know, it’s a little safer.” It’s unclear if she means sleeping in her own bed feels safer (lest she be whacked by three other pairs of feet) or that sleeping in the room with her family feels safer.
Brandon then says that when Sarah Grace potentially becomes “too big” to share the bed with her parents, that she’ll also get her own twin sized bed.
It wasn’t long before the clip received thousands of views on TikTok, with viewers sharing their bafflement at the arrangement.
“I can barely handle co-sleeping with my husband,” one person wrote.
Others were totally on board with the idea, even sharing their own co-sleeping stories.
One person commented, “You keep co-sleeping until those kiddos decide to sleep in their own beds ♥️”
Another added “We co-slept with our oldest til 12, our son til 10. We lived remote in the woods, my kids are grown and amazing keep doing you guys❤❤🙏.”
Still, others feared that the enmeshment could cause codependency issues long term, and get in the way of parents maintaining intimacy.
One person wrote, “As a child I know how safe it feels to sleep with your parents, but as a married woman I realize how important it is to not let my kids sleep w us.”
And while there’s perhaps validity coming from both sides of this argument, most behavioral experts would agree that neither choice is necessarily superior to the other. As James McKenna, PhD, an anthropologist specializing both in sleep behavior and infancy development says, “location is not as important as relationships—how parents build attachment and love.”
The Deal’s sleep strategy might not be suitable for others, but they have customized a plan that seems to work for them. May every family have the freedom and information they need to do the same.
Ozzy Osbourne is a grandfather. Sometimes it’s hard to remember that rock icons are actual human beings that age, have children of their own that produce grandchildren. Instead of screaming lyrics into a crowd with running eyeliner, more often than not Ozzy is just being a normal “papa” as his granddaughter Maple calls him.
Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne’s two youngest children both recently welcomed their own children into the world. Jack welcomed his 4th daughter, Maple in 2021 and Kelly welcomed her first child, Sidney, a boy in 2022. The Osbournes currently have a family podcast with Sharon, Ozzy, Kelly and Jack so it shouldn’t be a surprise that they spend time with their grandchildren just like any other grandparents.
But it was a sweet wholesome moment caught on video that has people gushing over baby Maple and her grandpa, Ozzy, who she calls “papa.”
Ozzy was performing on TV like most of us are used to seeing, but for Maple, it was a new experience. When she saw him on the television signing into a microphone, she couldn’t help but think he was performing just for her. The toddler watched her grandpa intently while repeating “papa, papa.” So clearly recognizing the man on stage with his hair in his face as her beloved papa.
Jack is sitting and smiling next to her watching the little girl excitedly recognize her famous grandpa. E News shared the sweet clip on TikTok where it racked up over 2.2 million likes and commenters can’t get over her adorable reaction.
“Omg! I love this! Imagine growing up to learn your grandpa is Ozzy Osbourne,” one person says.
“And this is how you know what kind of grandpa Ozzy is,” another comments.
“I could be wrong but I think Ozzy is Maple’s person,” someone writes.
While others were a bit mind blown that Ozzy is an actual grandpa. It’s just confirmation that these guys are just normal people with kind of wild jobs.
“Hearing Ozzy called “papa” is a trip in itself. I’m so old,” someone says.
“Ozzy has been a lot of things from Prince of Darkness to reality TV star. However, I think being a papa has been my favorite,” another commenter writes.
Well, Ozzy, if comments were a judge, seems like the consensus is, ya done good! Maple is certainly a fan. You can watch the sweet moment below.
Reneé Rapp has made headlines on her current tour, including after she did a cover of “One Less Lonely Girl” in a Bieber-styled costume on Halloween, and welcomed Lizzy McAlpine during her first of the NYC shows. Rapp’s Brooklyn concert last night (November 2) also had some surprises in store, with another special guest: Kesha.
Kesha joined her on stage at Avant Gardner, where the two went on to perform “Your Love Is My Drug.” Rapp kicked things off before Kesha joined in later, treating the crowd to a proper duet of the party hit.
“There are a couple of people in my life musically, and personally, and professionally, who I look up to and regard so highly,” Rapp introduced, according to Billboard. “They just shaped who I was a kid… and made me want to be sexy, and funny, and exciting, and outrageous, and loud, and most of all — really f*cking sexy. So, what better way to honor one of those women by playing one of those songs.”
Earlier in the week, when Rapp welcomed McAlpine out at her Terminal 5 show in Manhattan, the two covered “For Good” from the Wicked musical soundtrack.
Check out Reneé Rapp and Kesha performing “Your Love Is My Drug” together below.
Taylor Swift just reportedly had the biggest debut week of her career so far, with 1989 (Taylor’s Version) beating out her previous record for her 2022 album, Midnights. So far, Swift has six albums that have sold over 1 million copies in a single week, and her latest re-recording has likely outsold the original in pure sales for a first week, according to Hits Daily Double.
Here’s what to know about what Swift albums have sold the most as a whole, per the Recording Industry Association of America, which has yet to certify her re-recordings.
Fearless
According to the RIAA’s website, Swift’s best-selling era was her original Fearless — as it is the only album of hers to be certified Diamond as of 2017. Since the album’s release in 2008, it has gained over 10 million units.
1989
From there, her second-best-selling era was 1989‘s run in 2014. The site notes that in just three years after its release, the album went 9x Platinum, equating to 9 million certified units.
Red
Red follows close behind at 7 million units, with a 7x Platinum certification.
Taylor Swift
Swift’s self-titled debut album is tied with Red as moving a similar amount of units.
Reputation
Reputation is certified at 3x Platinum, with over 2 million of the units being pure sales.
Lover
While Lover‘s pure sales number was only 1.5 million in the US, it is still able to tie Reputation in other forms to be a triple Platinum record too.
Midnights
For Swift’s Midnights era, most of the 2x certification came through the album’s 2.5 million worth of direct sales.
Folklore
Folklore is another loved era among fans. It is 2x Platinum as well, with 1.7 million accounting for the sales.
Evermore
Evermore is near the bottom of Swift’s album sales, having just a standard Platinum certification for 913,000 of sales in the US. However, that doesn’t mean Swifties love it any less.
This week sees the return of two of hip-hop’s finest female rappers after some time away. In addition to Rapsody’s flexy comeback, Megan Thee Stallion dropped “Cobra,” addressing some of the reason for her absence:
Kid Cudi continued his Insano rollout with the Pharrell and Travis Scott collaboration, “At The Party“:
And Earthgang kicked off/continued the expansion of their Earthgang Vs. The Algorithm universe with “Blacklight“:
Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending November 3, 2023.
Albums/EPs/Mixtapes
JasonMartin — A Compton Story Pt. 1
JasonMartin
The rapper formerly known as Problem teams up with fellow Hub City natives AD, DJ Quik, Jay Worthy, NBA star DeMar DeRozan, and more to unreel an audio motion picture capturing two decades worth of life, death, and growth in town that gave the world the Venus sisters. There are also some surprising additions like Diddy, Rich Homie Quan, and T.I.
Jeezy — I Might Forgive … But I Don’t Forget
Jeezy
Jeezy’s vengeful double album is being hailed by fans as a return to the 2005 form that made the Snowman a hood phenomenon. There are certainly those who think the title and some of the content are aimed at his recent ex-wife Jeannie Mai, but to these ears, it sounds like Jeezy heard the footsteps of Father Time creeping up on him and decided to show that this old dog still has plenty of bite.
Lady London — S.O.U.L.
Lady London
I know I’m sort of beating a dead horse here, but hey old-school rap heads: You know how you’ve been complaining about Ice Spice all week? Why don’t you give Lady London a spin and try praising the modern generation of female rappers for a change (without comparing the two for bonus points). This Bronx native brings plenty of that mid-90s flavor so many old heads seem to be seeking on her debut album, right down to the creative repurposing of samples from that lauded era.
Ryan Trey — Streets Say You Miss Me
Ryan Trey
Here’s another debut album, this time from a St. Louis sing-rapper in the style of Bryson Tiller and 6lack (don’t be surprised if Wongo puts him in the R&B column too. I got him first, Wongo!). Regular readers know I’ve been digging this kid’s vibe for a minute and the R&B-washed beats offer a subtle backdrop for this solid introduction to Trey’s sonic vision. At 13 tracks, Streets avoids overstaying its welcome, leaving listeners likely to want more.
Tee Grizzley — Tee’s Coney Island
Tee Grizzley
For months now, I’ve been wondering what the heck has been going down in the D to make every rapper in a 30-mile radius so productive. Tee Grizzley’s latest might provide the answer; it’s the Coney dogs. The Motor City culinary staple is worth tromping through the city’s foot-high piles of slush in the winter and doing so is probably what gives them the fuel they need to be so productive and consistent.
Various Artists — Rap Sh!t: The Mixtape (From The Max Original Series, S2)
Raedio
Give Issa Rae’s Raedio imprint some credit; the people she’s put in place have great ears for under-the-radar talent to fill their show with. With the second season of Rap Sh!t out returning to Max next week, Raedio switches up its usual formula, dropping music from the upcoming episodes as a mixtape ahead of their air date. With guest spots from Cam & China, Connie Diiamond, Enchanting, Maiya The Don, Omeretta The Great, and TeaMarrr, it’s like a who’s-who of the next seven years of rap stars all in one place. Get familiar now.
Singles/Videos
The Alchemist — “Vertigo” Feat. Action Bronson
The Alchemist’s new EP Flying High 2 is out today, with appearances from Action Bronson, Conway The Machine, Curren$y, and Oh No. While Alchemist holds his own as a rapper alongside this rap murderer’s row, let’s be honest: The highlight here is another over-the-top verse from Bam Bam.
Benny The Butcher — “Big Dog” Feat. Lil Wayne
Of the Griselda core, Benny’s always struck me as the one best-poised for mainstream success and most willing to reach outside their usual ghoulish sample-based arrangements for beats with crossover appeal. Meanwhile, he continues to check off the list of established veteran super-rappers he’s worked with (J. Cole, Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg), spinning the block to reunite with Lil Wayne.
Cochise — “Hop In The Whip”
The 25-year-old Palm Bay, Florida rapper has one of the more unique deliveries in hip-hop today. Once your brain calibrates to it, though, it becomes hard to deny his infectious melodies and gift for catching unconventional pockets in the weird, wonky beats he tends to employ. “Hop In The Whip” continues his trend for deconstructing the standard sounds of hip-hop.
Kamaiyah — “XXL Letterman” h2>
Kamaiyah is clearly tired of being left out of the conversation lately — as she should be. She’s been consistently producing for the past decade, and as an alum of the XXL Freshman Class cover, she certainly deserves more attention than she is often afforded. Hanging out with YG again has also put her back in gangsta mode, apparently, as she stomps all over this menacing late-stage G-funk banger.
Rapsody — “Asteroids”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khiwsdYyx7Y
Don’t call it a comeback — but if you’re gonna come back, this is the way to do it. Rap deploys a soulful Hit-Boy production to issue a stern reminder of exactly why her name stays in the conversation, even four years since her last project. Even better, “Asteroids” signifies another full-length album from the North Carolina hip-hop torch-bearer is closing in.
Turbo — “Bachelor” Feat. Gunna
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIL2OhfIC90
Gunna and his go-to production partner have yet to miss this year, so it’s only right that Turbo once again taps in with his golden goose for the first single from his upcoming album.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Last week, a list of “unacceptable first date spots” emerged on Twitter that caused quite a ruckus on the Internet. It’s remarkable that Twitter still has the ability to ignite an argument that will ruffle feathers across our society. The list has a few obvious spots like a family function or a fast food restaurant that you could build a broad based consensus around.
However, the most heated debate centered on an attack of our country’s greatest chain restaurants. Waffle House, while not romantic, can prove if a partner can survive any situation with you. Olive Garden is basically Italy if you squint your eyes. Cheesecake Factory is a great restaurant to go to when you don’t know what someone likes because their menu is 12 pages long.
On Friday, the good folks at the NBA on TNT showed this list to the Inside the NBA crew, who had some reactions that were priceless to seeing some of their favorite establishments and date night activities on the list.
Ernie Johnson is a family man and you can tell he intends to stay a family man after reading this list. Dating is a difficult game in 2023 even if you’re Charles Barkley or Shaq. The big fellas will have to find countermoves for their coffee and hookah bar dates. According to the list, sporting events are out too, so this will require some real creativity on their end. At least the entire crew agreed that family functions are out on the first date, but we’re still not sure if they’ve figured out what would be acceptable.
One of the big issues the NBA is facing with the inaugural In-Season Tournament is convincing people how the whole thing works. While the clip was ultimately pretty funny, the sentiment shared by Los Angeles Clippers guard Bones Hyland is someone common: It’s a new thing, and it’s not 100 percent clear to the casual fan how it all works.
There have been plenty of attempts at explaining the whole thing — if you would like to read ours, you can go ahead and do that right here. But the New York Knicks decided to try something a little bit different in their attempt to lay out how it works, as the team enlisted my fellow Italian-American from the tri-state area Cugine to walk their fans through what’s going to happen over the next few weeks and what could happen if New York advances to the knockout portion of the tournament.
The Knicks will be one of the first teams to kick off the In-Season Tournament when it begins on Friday night. In one of the headline matchups during the first night of group play, New York is traveling to Milwaukee to take on Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, and the Bucks. The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. EST on ESPN.
Sesame Street is about to enter its new era now that Elmo has experinced what it’s like to reinvent oneself. The series will get a fresh new makeover for its 56th season, which is aiming to debut in 2025.
The series will drop its familiar “magazine-style” format and instead present two 11-minute, narrative-driven stories per episode, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This will give the team an opportunity to dive into more “dynamic” and “sophisticated” stories that naturally come up on any given street, like “How do all of the streetlights know when to come on at night?” or “Why does this trash can moss monster keep stealing my mail?” or “Why do they have to bring the loud trash truck around at 5 am? Can’t they just come at 8 am when the sun is already up????” You know, normal neighborhood things.
In between each segment will be a new animated series, Tales From 123. Sesame Workshop executive VP and production officer Kay Wilson Stallings told THR that this will open up a whole new world for the street. “For the very first time, [Tales From 123] will give viewers an opportunity to go inside 123 Sesame Street, which is probably the most famous apartment building in the world.” They did not, however, receive clearance from Oscar, who resides in the trash can outside 123, so we aren’t allowed in there. Please scram accordingly.
In addition to the new style, Wilson Stallings says that every episode will have a signature song, which she hopes will be sung by some famous singers. Perhaps Taylor Swift can stop by and teach some basic math since she’s really good at that.
The timing is interesting, as Sesame Workshop’s five-year deal with Warner Bros. Discovery will end next year, meaning that if this new format goes well, they might want to renew for even more grouchy Oscar content. We can have 50 more years of this.
Halloween has passed, thus kicking off the incoming holiday season. It’s during this time of year that celebration, gratitude and reclaiming simple joys seem paramount.
It’s not always easy to be in high spirits, though. Luckily, Upworthy can help with that. Each week we curate a list of things that brought a smile to our face. Little reminders that the world is still a pretty cool place, and that a lot of the people in it are quite wonderful.
And because the Halloween spirit doesn’t have to expire after October 31st, this week’s list of 10 smile-inducing things includes quite a bit of spooky fun—creative costumes, furry friends interacting with jack-o-lanterns and a friendly ghost vacuum to boot.
Scroll down and enjoy.
1. Sisters create a super realistic rollercoaster costume for Halloween.
Apparently, reading from the manual was the child’s request. But quite honestly, that voice could read the phone book and it would sound oh-so soothing. Perhaps that will be the next reading material!
Proving that all cats are the same, not matter the size.
5. George Washington shares his dream for America’s wacky measuring system in a hilarious “SNL” skit
Comedian and host Nate Bargatze delivers an amazingly understated performance as Washington, which makes the comedy sing in this one. No wonder viewers hailed it an “instant classic.”
6. Kitties waiting patiently for their steamed milk is too cute for this world
They’ve got their own little cat cafe going on! If only we humans could be this patient at Starbucks.
7. Toddler gets pulled over in her hot pink kiddie jeep
Most adorable lawbreaker of all time.
8. Meet Peanut, the world’s oldest chicken
Peanut was a late hatcher, but 20 years later and she’s still clucking. Considering the average life expectancy of a chicken is around 5-10, that’s quite a feathery feat.
This sweet little girl can’t take her eyes off her new mommy. Melts the heart on so many levels, doesn’t it?
Hope this roundup helped brighten your day. If you enjoyed this post and want to see more like it in your inbox, subscribe to our free email newsletter, The Upworthiest, here.
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