Category: Worldwide

Donald Trump, adrift in a world without Twitter, could really use a social media lifeline to prevent him from scribbling down insults and hoping a carrier pigeon happens to fly by. His reticence to join Parler in the wake of his getting removed from Twitter was a curiosity to some, especially given how many of his supporters flocked to the MAGA-friendly service in the aftermath of his November election loss. But now we may know a bit more about why he never joined Parler before it was booted from app stores and Amazon’s server space: he tried (and failed) to negotiate a deal to join.

According to Buzzfeed, Trump and his surrogates were negotiating him joining Parler in exchange for an ownership stake in the company while he was still in office. The talks apparently never got anywhere, in part because, well, it would almost certainly be against the law:

Former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale raised the idea to Trump of taking an ownership stake in Parler during a meeting last year at the White House, according to a source familiar with the negotiations. Parscale had taken an early interest in Parler, and reportedly considered creating an account for Trump on the site in 2019 as a bulwark against Twitter and Facebook.

Four sources told BuzzFeed News that Parscale and Trump campaign lawyer Alex Cannon met with Parler CEO John Matze and shareholders Dan Bongino and Jeffrey Wernick at Trump’s Florida club Mar-a-Lago in June 2020 to discuss the idea. But the White House counsel’s office soon put a stop to the talks, one person with knowledge of the discussions said, ruling that such a deal while Trump was president would violate ethics rules.

There are a lot of wild and unprecedented things Trump did during his four years in office, and the nonexistent separation between his work as president and his business deals remains near the top of the list even after “inciting a coup attempt” was added to it. But negotiating a business deal to join a social media service as a part-owner after getting kicked off Twitter for being too dangerous to America is certainly a new wrinkle to Trump’s chaos. And despite him not being fully involved in the talks, the idea that surrogates of his had the power to organize these sort of potential talks provides a lens into the extremely unusual nature of the Trump presidency.

Buzzfeed reported that those early 2020 talks were revived once Trump lost the November election, but that they “fell apart” after the January 6 MAGA riot that left five people dead following an attack on the U.S. Capitol that Trump helped to incite:

However, in negotiations with the Trump Organization, Parler offered a 40% stake in the company, according to a December document seen by BuzzFeed News and two people with direct knowledge of the proposed deal. Upon completion of that deal, half of that stake would have been given immediately to the Trump Organization, while the other half would have been doled out in tranches over the 24-month period of the agreement.

Meanwhile, a deplatformed Trump has reportedly resorted to writing down mean tweets about those who have betrayed him, sometimes trying to get others to tweet his ghost-written insults. This news came Friday from a story in The Daily Beast about Trump’s reaction to Liz Cheney voting to impeach Trump and seeing backlash from fellow Republicans:

People close to Trump say he views Cheney’s immediate fortunes as one of the first tests of his lasting influence on the party and conservative movement.

But due to Twitter’s banning of the @realDonaldTrump account following the Capitol riot that Trump instigated, he has not been able to personally trash Cheney via his once widely read tweets. He has written out insults and observations, several of them about Cheney, but with no ability to tweet them himself, he has resorted to suggesting put-downs for others to use or post to their own Twitter, according to a person with direct knowledge of this new habit.

It’s a depressing fate for one of the few True Posters out there, but it’s probably safer for the state of democracy, all things considered.

[via Buzzfeed, The Daily Beast]

Humans and dogs have a long, historic relationship that plays out in special, individual bonds the world over. Countless people have found themselves unable to resist the adorableness of a puppy they were just going to “look at,” and ended up in a mutually adoring relationship. Countless kids have grown up with a loyal canine companion who is always there for them and makes up a big part of their childhood memories.

This bond is no more apparent than when a dog and its favorite human get separated and then reunited. Some dogs express excitement when they see pretty much anyone, but when a pup has a person, there’s nothing like it.

Just look at how happy this lost doggo is to see her owner—and vice versa.

This dog’s favorite human has had to social distance from his family due to a lung condition during the pandemic. When they finally get to see each other? Magic.

When your pup goes missing, it’s traumatic. A good samaritan found this dog from “Missing” signs put up in the neighborhood, and just look how the owner comes running when he sees his furry friend in the front seat.

This gentleman has been in the hospital, so someone had to hold the sweet pupperoo back a bit at first so the man didn’t get pummeled with love. But once they let go, the good doggo gave him some warm, gentle lovin’.

Sometimes a reunion happens after a long absence, but dogs remember their loved ones. It may take some sniffing around a bit to trigger the recognition, but once that happens it’s a sight to behold.

This sweet girl has been living in a shelter for three year after getting separated from her owner. It takes her a minute to realize who he is, but then the love fest begins. The jumping and the whimpering? So awesome.

Dog Reunited with Owner Slowly Recognizes Dad After Years in Shelter | The Dodo

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This dog’s owner’s been gone for two years with the military. At first, the dog seems not to recognize her, and even seems wary of her. Then comes the sniff and a hug. Then full-on celebration.

Se n’è andata da 2 anni … guardate la reazione del suo cane quando la riconosce

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This golden retriever doesn’t have that issue. In fact, just the mention of his mama being home sends him to the door, and when she comes in? Best. Day. Ever.

Adorable Golden Retriever Welcomes Marine Home

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This owner and his dog have only been separated for five weeks, but a five-week hospital stay that results in a 50-pound weight loss confused the poor pup. He barks and won’t get close enough to smell him at first. But once he does, the tail goes wagging and the kisses commence.

Dog Doesn’t Recognize Owner After Weight Loss…Until He Sniffs | The Dodo

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Sometimes a dog that’s gone missing goes through some things before they finally get reunited with their humans. This doggo seems scared when she sees her family after having been lost for 19 months. Who knows what she experienced, but once she starts warming up a bit and gets close enough to smell her humans, the reunion becomes the joyful party it should be.

Dog Reunited with Family Gets So Happy After She Recognizes Their Scent | The Dodo

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But this one. This one really shows how much Jorge the dog missed his owners after being lost for three years. You can hear it in his voice. Seriously.

Man Films Himself Reuniting With Dog After 3 Years Apart | The Dodo

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Humans barely deserve dogs, but we’re so grateful for the joy, companionship, and genuine no-strings-attached love they bring to our lives.

Topaz Jones has released a handful of singles following his 2016 album Arcade, but the New Jersey musician is gearing up for something bigger for his next project. On Friday, Jones returned to announce his upcoming album Don’t Go Tellin’ Your Momma with the electric single “Herringbone,” but that’s not all. The album will debut alongside a short film of the same name, which was lauded as 2021’s Best Non-Fiction Short Film by Sundance Film Festival.

The accompanying visual album was both written and directed by Jones long with directing duo rubberband. The film is a modern day interpretation of The Black ABCs, which was a flashcard set developed by Chicago teachers in the ’70s to allow Black children to learn the alphabet with words that resonated with them. The cards featured messaging like “A is for Afro” and just celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2020.

Jones’ Don’t Go Tellin’ Your Momma album acts as the score for the film, which does not yet have a definitive release date. Speaking about the project in a statement, Jones said the short film further explores the albums themes:

The film is all the things I couldn’t say in musical notes. The music is everything I couldn’t write in words, even though there’s lyrics that speak to it as well, but emotionally, it’s everything I couldn’t necessarily write down and the film is everything that I couldn’t put in song. It is single-handedly the most gratifying, fulfilling experience I’ve had as an artist.

Listen to “Herringbone” and watch the trailer for Topaz Jones’ Don’t Go Tellin’ Your Momma short film above.

On Friday morning, One American News Network began airing Mike Lindell’s “documentary” on the 2020 election for 12 hours straight, but with a massive disclaimer that may not be enough to protect the network from an extremely damaging lawsuit. As for why OAN is running the legally precarious documentary in the first place, the answer is simple: Lindell paid for the airtime. The network also feels that it adequately covered itself by running a lengthy 80-second disclaimer before each airing that makes it clear that OAN does not endorse the conspiracy theories spouted by Lindell.

More importantly, OAN takes great pains to note that it has nothing to do with Lindell’s claims about Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic, the two voting companies who are currently dealing out billion-dollar lawsuits to Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, Fox News, and other right-wing media outlets who peddled in the “Big Lie” allegations of voter fraud. However, an attorney for Dominion says that OAN’s disclaimer won’t stand up against an “imminent” lawsuit. Via Law&Crime:

“‘Nice try’ by OAN, but it definitely does not relieve them of liability,” [Thomas] Clare told Law&Crime. “To the contrary, we warned them specifically and in writing that they would be broadcasting false and defamatory statements of fact if they broadcast the program, and they made the affirmative decision to disregarded that warning and broadcast it anyway.”

According to Thomas, the fact that OAN is only the network to run Lindell’s “documentary” while others refused demonstrates “textbook actual malice.” When reached for comment, OAN referred back to its disclaimer. “We sold the air time at fair market value. The paid content is clearly differentiated from OAN content. OAN did not assist with the production.”

(Via Law&Crime)

There are a lot of versions of the Irish coffee cocktail out there. But you’d be hard-pressed to find one without a dash of Baliey’s Irish Cream in it. That changes today. We’re taking the cocktail back to its roots — by making the classic recipe, sans the creamy booze.

The Irish coffee is pretty straightforward for a hot cocktail. Even if you don’t have a coffee machine at home, you can always use instant coffee in a pinch. Other than that, you really just have to whip some cream. And even then, no one is going to stop you from using whipped cream from one of those spray cans.

A classic Irish coffee is a mix of black coffee (usually a double espresso these days), sugar, Irish whiskey, and whipped cream. The construction is what makes the drink special. The idea is to have a layer of cream that you sip the whiskey-spiked coffee through — adding a balanced and textural experience to the drink.

Let’s get mixing!

Irish Coffee

Ingredients:

• 4-oz. freshly brewed black coffee/espresso
• 1.5-oz. Irish whiskey
• 1.5-oz. heavy cream (32%)
• 1 barspoon demerara sugar
• Optional: dusting of cinnamon, nutmeg, or cocoa powder

I’m using a double espresso (one shot of espresso is two-ounces) from my home machine. It’s nothing special, just straightforward coffee. For the Irish whiskey, use what you have on hand. You don’t have to go too high on the price scale. Jameson, Bushmills, Tullamore are all fine.

Finally, traditionally the cocktail doesn’t call for a dusting of anything on the cream. But, it does add a nice touch with a little more depth to the overall end product. That being said, you don’t have to add a dusting of anything if you don’t want to.

What You’ll Need:

• Coffee maker
• Milk frother
• Clear coffee mug
• Barspoon
• Extra glasses or mugs
• Jigger

Method:

• Add hot coffee, whiskey, and sugar to the mug. Stir until sugar is completely dissolved.
• Froth the cream (15 to 20 seconds). Use the barspoon to scoop the cream on top of the cocktail gently so that it floats.
• Optional: dust with cinnamon, nutmeg, or cocoa powder.
• Serve.

Bottom Line:

From the first sip, it’s easy to see why this drink caught on. Sipping the coffee through the cream just cools it enough to make it very easy to drink.

The body of the cocktail has a nice nuttiness to it that’s cut slightly by the sugar base and distinct whiskey. The bitterness almost becomes slightly tart but is then smoothed out completely by the cream.

I dusted mine with nutmeg, which added a well-rounded and wintry vibe and matched the nuttiness and creaminess of the drink itself.

Overall, this was super easy to make. It took maybe two minutes, tops. No frills. It was warming, had a nice whiskey edge, and provided a much-needed mid-day caffeine boost.

Sometimes good R&B can be hard to find, but there are plenty of great rhythm and blues tunes to get into if you have the time to sift through the hundreds of newly released songs every week. So that R&B heads can focus on listening to what they really love in its true form, we’ll be offering a digest of the hottest R&B jams that fans of the genre should hear every Friday.

Trey Songz — “Brain”

As of late, Trey Songz has had the internet buzzing for a really big reason and coming off that NSFW attention, naturally, Trigga dropped a new song titled “Brain” to capitalize off the moment. The song definitely lives in the same vein of his Anticipation mixtape series, so press play.

Tone Stith — “FWM”

Tone Stith deserves to be heard live but since we’re in a pandemic, the R&B singer’s latest string of live performances at home has been a great satisfaction. The latest in Tone’s line-up is “FWM,” the follow up to his track “Devotion.”

Giveon — “Still Your Best (Acoustic)”

Giveon‘s “Still Your Best” just got the acoustic treatment and it’s lovely. The song is off his 2020 project When It’s All Said And Done and remains to be a fan favorite.

Inayah — “Fallin”

R&B darling Inayah just released the visual for her latest song “Fallin.” Borrowing from Blackstreet’s ’90s classic “Don’t Leave Me,” Inayah expresses how she feels about the boy she wants while hanging out with her girls at a very cute old school diner.

Lucky Daye & Tiana Major9 — “On Read”

Lucky Daye and Tiana Major9 switch it up a bit for their collaborative track “On Read.” With a hint of sensuality along with heavy bass and high-hats, Lucky and Tiana create an intense slow jam that is filled with peak toxicity infused with lust.

Bri Steves — “Anti Queen”

Bri Steves has a message and it’s time to listen up. “Anti Queen” is the artist’s progressive new single about how women are perceived, paying homage to plenty of R&B legends in the process. “‘Anti Queen’ challenges people’s expectations and perceptions of female artists,” Steves said in a statement. “I’m pointing out there’s more than one way to wear the crown. In my video, I pay homage to a few women who came before me – Missy Elliott, Aaliyah, Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and Lisa ‘Left Eye’ Lopez.”

Karl Benjamin — “Moon”

Karl Benjamin confesses to his love with his music video for “Moon,” an ode to Black love. “This song represents the journey of a relationship. It represents the progress that two people can make, together rather than apart.” Karl said in a statement. “’Moon,’ to me, is about the adventure you go through, to finally arrive at the most intimate moment within the relationship you treasure most.”

Young Rog — “BS” feat. Summer Walker

LVRN artists Young Rog and Summer Walker linked up for the visual to the Virginia native’s track “BS.” Directed by Mac Grant, Summer and Rog go back and forth in the game of love.

Brandy Haze — “On Site”

Off Brandy Haze’s latest album Silhouette, is the standout track “On Site.” The project just released today and is filled with songs just like this.

Ray Moon — “Glowin”

Ray Moon’s “Glowin” is the perfect break-up-bounce-back-like-i-never-left song and today the singer offers its’ illuminated visual. “When you see growth you can recognize it and embrace your growth that we call ‘Glowin,’” she said in a statement. “I’ve been in the darkest places many times so I am able to realize when I’m glowing and growing, I’m also able to see when someone is glowing as well. To me Glowing means happiness.”

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

A suddenly hot topic in the NBA is the 2021 All-Star Game, which appears set to take place in Atlanta next month. While the parameters of the game were reportedly agreed to by the league and the Players Association, De’Aaron Fox and LeBron James have both voiced serious concerns about it being held amid the COVID-19 pandemic — Fox cited the lengths to which players already have to go to stay safe, while James, citing exhaustion, said he was looking forward to having a week to decompress following last season’s slog and the rushed offseason.

Now, a third player has decided to speak up, although it’s someone who isn’t particularly concerned about getting the call to head down to Atlanta, as Boston Celtics guard Kemba Walker spoke to the media on Friday and backed up James’ stance on the whole thing.

“I’m probably not gonna be selected, so I could care less,” Walker said. “We all seen what ‘Bron said, so.”

When asked if he shares the sentiment shared by James, Walker said, “Yeah, I agree. He’s a smart man, he’s been around, he’s a leader. A lot of things he says is correct, man. He feels the way he feels. I’m probably gonna be on vacation, so.”

The Celtics have opted to ease Walker into this year after getting treatment on his knee during the offseason, meaning he has appeared in seven games and is averaging 15 points and 4.3 assists a night. He is right that it’d be a surprise if he was an All-Star — Walker did not appear in the first top-10 roundup of fan voting — but even if he did get a nod, Walker appears to be in the James camp of really wanting to chill out for a week instead of participating in an extra basketball game.

The GameStop stock drama is taking something of an ugly turn. WallStreetBets — the forum where a group of Redditors decided to work together to buy up shares of GameStop in direct opposition to hedge funds like Melvin Capital, who have made it a practice to borrow shares of struggling companies and profit off their losses — has been home to infighting in recent days as the company’s stock price fell sharply this week. GameStop’s price per share is down 84%, a drop spurred on by questionable practices from the investment app, Robinhood, and by many original Reddit buyers deciding to sell their shares.

“Stop f—ing selling GME,” was the title of one of the latest threads on the WallStreetBets forum where members were arguing over whether to hold their stock or give in to outside influences pressuring Reddit members to sell.

“We have the advantage. All we have to [do] is buy and hold shares,” one Reddit user responded while another issued this warning: “To any [hedge fund] plants in the sub trying to break [WallStreetBets]: F— you. I’m not selling. We’re not selling.”

This isn’t the first time members of the forum have argued over the next steps in their plan to subvert the stock market. News of Hollywood studios wanting to buy the rights to tell their story for various streaming platforms caused a handful of Redditors to clash over who within the group should profit. Still, despite declining stock prices and increasing government scrutiny, whether they make millions from this or not, what the Reddit group has been able to do will certainly have a lasting effect on Wall Street.

And really, isn’t that priceless?

As far as killer dolls go, Chucky is the GOAT (sorry not sorry, Annabelle). The lil’ knife-wielding, overalls-wearing maniac has appeared in eight movies, from 1988’s Child’s Play to 2019’s reboot with Aubrey Plaza and Mark Hamill, and will star in an upcoming television show, too. He also recently confused a whole lot of people in Texas.

The New York Times reports that the Texas Department of Public Safety sent out an Amber Alert last week notifying residents that a child had been abducted by a 28-year-old male with red or auburn hair and blue eyes. Also, he’s a doll. The additional information reads, “Blue denim overalls with multi-colored striped long sleeve shirt wielding a huge kitchen knife,” but nowhere does it mention that the alert was the “result of a test malfunction.”

The department later apologized “for the confusion this may have caused” and said they are “diligently working to ensure this does not happen again,” so the next time you get an Amber Alert for a fictional murder doll (this happens all the time), just know that it didn’t come from the Texas Department of Public Safety. But the weirdest/creepiest detail of all: Chucky’s five-year-old abductee was his son, Glen, who was introduced in Seed of Chucky.

The alert said that Chucky and Glen were last seen at a residential address in Henderson, Texas, a city about 130 miles southeast of Dallas. A woman who answered a call to a phone number associated with that address on Wednesday said, “Yes, I’m aware” when asked about the alert before hanging up.

Meanwhile, the Bride of Chucky is still on the loose.

(Via the New York Times)

Cardi B is once again being accused of plagiarizing others’ songs after releasing her latest single “Up” last night. Shortly after its release, a New Jersey rapper named Mir Pesos posted a snippet of the video, tweeting, “We want my money!” Pesos pointed out how similar the hook from “Up” is to the one from his own song “Stuck,” released with Mir Fontane in September 2020.

In response, Cardi presented a video recording from a fan taken during an Instagram Live stream in August in which she previewed “Up” for fans. “I’m the type of person that avoids problems & court days,” she wrote. “If i get inspired by a song I wouldn’t mind giving a percentage or couple of thousand but I never Hurd if this man. I’m glad while I was recording this song in August I was playing wit the hook on this live.”

Mir Fontane insisted that his and Pesos’ track had been previewed and recorded a day before the day Cardi’s Live took place, saying the two rappers had “recorded it even earlier than that.”

While the songs bear similar hooks, it should be noted that the point of contention “if it’s up, then it’s stuck” is a common slang phrase, while the cadence both songs use is clearly influenced by the 2006 Crime Mob hit “Knuck If You Buck.”

This isn’t the first time Cardi has had to defend herself from accusations of plagiarism. In June last year, an underground rapper noted similarities between one of her songs and Cardi’s verses on Offset’s “Clout” and Blueface’s “Thotiana (Remix).” As in that case, Cardi chose to exit the debate early, telling her fans to “RUN THE NUMBERS UP!”

Compare the songs above.