Category: Worldwide

When I saw Fontaines DC for the first time, at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City, I found myself caught in the middle of a brawl as the band thrashed on stage under harsh light. The playful throwing of elbows in the pit had turned to throwing of fists, and all of a sudden, I was beneath the scuffle as they collapsed to the floor wailing on one another. As I was pulled off the ground by a kind group of strangers, I found myself reminded of the punk shows that happened on the Bowery in the not too distant past, back when the block was “where you would never want to end up,” according to Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz in an excerpt from his forthcoming book that was recently published in The New Yorker. He continues: “The long history of the Bowery is one of crime, misadventure, debauchery, desperation, and death.”

It’s a strong contrast to read about through a modern lens, as the route one takes on their way the Bowery Ballroom is peppered with art galleries and boutique restaurants while CBGB’s iconic emblem has been replaced by a John Varvatos logo. Time moves fast, and sometimes it pays to force yourself to slow down and take a look at what truly makes the world around you beautiful.

It’s with this mindset that Fontaines DC hit the studio to record their sophomore album, A Hero’s Death. After years spent on the road supporting their buzzy debut Dogrel, the band was starting to lose touch with themselves. “I think I lost an ability to get out of my comfort zone by touring so much,” guitarist Carlos O’Connell tells me over the phone in mid-July, four months into an international lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. “Playing shows, however big or small, became my comfort zone. And anything outside of that was really uncomfortable for a long time. Socializing became uncomfortable. Things that would have made me happy before, all that stuff became uncomfortable to do.”

The album was completed just before the coronavirus pandemic really set in, but seems prophetic in its emphasis on being comfortable with one’s self in isolation. A bit more brooding and reflective than the band’s debut, the album is a meditation on life, individuality, and finding a home in the midst of constant movement. “It’s hard to remember your identity when you’re seen only as a touring band,” O’Connell explains. When the virus-induced lockdown descended upon the world, he retreated from his home in Dublin to the countryside. “I was very remote. You do that then you just learn to find what was there before the band started taking over your entire life.”

The band sounds wiser on A Hero’s Death, perhaps informed by their newfound worldview, expanded by two years on the road. “We just came to accept that we were feeling differently and the music we were to write shouldn’t in any way keep in mind what we’ve written before,” O’Connell explains. “We should just be allowed to write as honestly at the time of writing it. I look forward to playing these songs live and I don’t really know what the performance will be like. I’m excited to see what it feels like to be full of energy and feeling vulnerable at the same time.”

Where Dogrel was rooted in the desire to do something greater than what was attainable in the small world that existed in the band’s purview, A Hero’s Death investigates the possibility that the thing you were looking for might have been within yourself all along. It encourages the listener to join the band in their musings, and each song could soundtrack a different worldly reaction to introspection — “Love Is The Main Thing” underscoring one’s pacing while “A Lucid Dream” takes on a more aggressive approach.

Before lockdown, you could see a certain intensity in the band as they performed on stage. A Hero’s Death takes this intensity and focuses it inward, finding a young band fully in control of their craft, utilizing their influences and experiences to inform their approach, all the while not compromising themselves or their initial mission. Fontaines DC are as close to “the real deal” as a punk disciple will find in the 21st century.

My lengthy conversation with O’Connell has been condensed and edited for clarity.

What is it like to have a glimpse of how big the world is and then all of a sudden be confined back to your hometown that you worked so hard to get out of?

It’s made me really look back and made me sad that I didn’t take in most of the world. I didn’t get to experience it. I think we kind of always aspired to get out there and do something bigger than what we were presented in our upbringing. Everyone in my generation had that aspiration to get out and do something bigger than themselves. I think if you get lost in that, you lose track of a lot. If you can be fulfilled with not much around you, you’ll be the happiest person in the world. And I think artistically, for me anyways, that’s what happened. I was able to just be completely focused creatively and make more music throughout this whole time knowing necessarily that it doesn’t have to be for a new album or with the band or anything like that. That it’s just my creative outcome. That’s a part of me, not a part of where I am or how big and successful we get.

I’ve seen a lot of friends of mine who wanted to be in music and emigrated abroad, for a better life and a more exciting life. And they’ve all returned because you want to open up your home when a global pandemic is going on. A lot of them are realizing that they don’t really want to go back to what they were doing. They’re actually happier at home than these expeditions they did to bigger cities. At the end of the day, they were stressed out all the time trying to do something that was meaningful, and it didn’t happen. Because it doesn’t happen, it has nothing to do with the outside world or what you surround yourself with. I think there was a lot of good to take with this whole new situation. I just hope that none of that is forgotten.

How did international touring affect your worldview, in general?

I think I lost an ability to get out of my comfort zone by touring so much. Playing shows, however big or small, became my comfort zone. And anything outside of that was really uncomfortable for a long time. Socializing became uncomfortable. Things that would have made me happy before, all that stuff became uncomfortable to do. I think its probably had a detrimental effect in that sense. I don’t think I was able to see things for what they are because I was never grounded or settled.

What would you say is the virtue in finding spaces where you feel grounded and settled?

I think it’s all about being comfortable within yourself and knowing what it is that’s important to who you are. I think for a while, when being so absorbed in touring, you convince yourself that you’re defined by your band and your band’s achievements and your band’s songs and what they have to say. And I think there’s a lot more to myself and each one of the lads than all of that. I think it was easy to forget that. Music for me is one of the most important things in my life but then I developed a sense of anxiety over being able to always be ahead of myself, musically and creatively. I think there’s a lot more to life than your musical outcome.

There’s simpler things in life that will give you a sense of wholeness and they are part of the definition of “self” for each person. I think constantly be on top of all those different things is to be grounded. It has definitely been a bit of a rollercoaster being all over the place, changing city by the day, to being stuck in one place for four months, now. To go from one extreme to the other for me has been a roller coaster. I feel quite grounded here for a time, but I go through areas of not really understanding if I am grounded or if I am fulfilled or if I’m missing something. I suppose I will always miss something if I’m not touring and I’m not writing and I’m not with all the boys because that is a big part of me right now. We’ve all learned a lot from this.

Getting away from the more existential stuff, and into the music itself, I want to ask about your live stage presence. It feels very referential of some of the classic bands from the hey-day of punk.

I’m obviously a big fan of those punk bands and the New York punk scene, as well. But what happens when we play live is a physical reaction to the music. Music definitely has that power to move people, both emotionally and physically, and that’s a beautiful thing, that connection to body and spirit. That’s what happens when we play live, we’re just moved. I don’t think it’s restrained in terms of influence. At the end of the day when we listen to the music, we’re really looking for that connection and if you’re listening to an artist that doesn’t have that connection with their own music, you probably wouldn’t be interested in it. I suppose, if we were to share something, it wouldn’t be any sort of on-stage persona, but a connection with our music.

A lot of bands are talking about how to keep momentum during this period of uncertainty with regard to touring. Some are even pushing their albums to later in the year, in hopes that there will be an avenue to playing shows by the time the record comes out. But A Hero’s Death is so reflective and meditative that it might actually be good to release it during this time when people have time to just sit with it and understand it.

Yeah. I’ve been thinking about it a bit and the record was mostly written last year when we were on tour, and tour, in hindsight, seems like quite an isolation period in my mind. I think it might be really good time for this record to exist in the world because it was written from a point of isolation, trying to find something outside of that. So I actually think that this time might be very good for the record to be out there and people might find some comfort in it in the same way we found when we were writing it.

It also feels like the record is in part about maintaining a sense of individualism and feeling comfortable with yourself as you, especially in a world where having an individual persona is becoming rarer because of the internet.

Yeah, exactly. Everyone wants to be an individual so badly that all the differences become the same. We’re not defined by our differences anymore but we’re defined by the similar, when everyone’s trying to shy away from that which makes you similar to someone else.

And people who do have an individual identity sometimes use it as a brand and not so much as a… person.

So many people having this urge to broadcast themselves and their lives is scary to me. I find it even scarier now that [Fontaines] have this platform where we’re meant to broadcast ourselves, but I really don’t want to. We’ve always tried to only have a presence in the world that is dictated by the music that we put out and not anything else because thats the only part of myself that I want to broadcast. I find it quite scary how people, even though they don’t have something like music or art that can be useful to other people, still have this need to broadcast their daily lives instead of taking it as what they’re made of. Strange world we live in, especially now. It seems like even more now, because we’re isolated and in lockdown, that people are living through their screens even more than they were before. It’s scary.

You would think that all of this downtime would result in a spurt of creative energy but I’ve heard a lot of artists says that it’s actually the opposite because they’re just so confined and there’s nothing to inspire.

Yeah, for sure. I went thru a creative period in the start of this when I went to the countryside because I went to someplace new and I had a lot of time to look within. But as soon as I left the countryside and I was put back into the city, the city felt like the most uninspiring place ever because its the place that should be alive.

I always like to ask this: What would you say is the mission or thesis statement of A Hero’s Death?

It’s quite a dark album. I do feel it’s an overall, positive journey. It’s an album that is not scared to look within and into the deepest and darkest aspects of individual humans and humanity. And you find the light at the very end. Not from the outside world, but that light is within and just needs to be found hiding down deep.

A Hero’s Death is out July 31 on Partisan Records. Pre-order it here.

Adisa Banjoko is a master of managing time. I know this because he’s got books and businesses and fascinating resume entries to his name. But also because before I was able to say “hello” when I called him one afternoon in July, he was already half-deep into an explanation of stoicism. Before we’d bothered with pleasantries, he’d expounded on his daily practice of self-examination through journaling.

“I ask myself these questions every day…,” he said, coming out of the gate hot. “The first question is: ‘what did I do well today?’ Then it’s ‘What did I do bad?’ ‘When was my self-discipline or self-control tested?’ ‘Why did this occur?’ ‘What do you think was the root cause of those discomforts is, and how can I improve?’”

Heavy stuff, but it seems to be working. Banjoko is a lecturer, author, journalist, actor, and all-around renaissance man. Perhaps most notably, he’s a chess player. When the Wu-Tang Clan’s the RZA is looking to play a game, Banjoko is on speed dial. As the founder of the longstanding Hip Hop Chess Federation — which offers recreational activities, workshops, educational scholarships, and lectures on strategy for individuals in at-risk communities — the Grandmaster has built a career pairing kids with rappers, movie producers, MMA fighters, and other role models for friendly games.

For Banjoko, chess is the ultimate equalizer. It’s a truly level playing field.

“These black and white squares do not care what color you are or if you are rich or poor,” he says. “The only thing they ask is that you come with strategy, patience, and skills.”

Banjoko’s strategies come from the teachings he’s learned from years of playing chess, studying martial arts, and his life-long love of hip-hop. Considering that he’s a man whose approach to living revolves around strategy, we reached out to him to get his take on how to make this particular moment — with daily civil unrest, an economic downturn, and a raging global pandemic — one of self-improvement, rather than existential stress and anxiety.

What’s with the journaling?

I just started studying stoicism and this is a practice that Marcus Aurelius used to do. When you first do it it feels dumb! “What did I do good today?” “What did I do bad?” Your answers will be really short, but when you really start looking into your life you will find mistakes, and you’ll start to find where you held your own ground in terms of who you see yourself as, and who you say you are.

Over time, I’ve noticed patterns — maybe when my meditation practice drops off, how does that affect my days? Journaling also makes me more present with people, I don’t take their disrespect personally and I don’t take their praise for a fact. I start to hold myself more accountable when I don’t eat right, or when I say I’m going to work out and I didn’t. Or when I said I’m going to finish a book and it’s still barely touched.

It keeps me accountable for myself.

I wanted to ask you about your passion for chess and how you connect that to life. What lessons can we learn from playing the game?

Chess is one of the oldest games in the world that everyone still plays. When a person plays chess, what are they dealing with? They’re dealing with issues of structure, they’re dealing with issues of risk, and risk assessment, they’re dealing with overcoming after loss, you come up short with your Rook or your Knight, and now you gotta figure out how to make it happen with it with fewer resources. You are dealing with issues of patience, and perseverance. Who doesn’t need that right now? Show me a person who doesn’t need it. The game of chess is one of the few games that can give you all of that every time you play it.

It helps you understand yourself. Are you too aggressive? Are you too passive? Do you understand what you think you see? This is a time when you can’t misjudge that. The move before checkmate determines if you really see a thing for what it is or not. You go “Ha, checkmate! There is my queen,” and they’re like “Nope, my Knight is right there and you just lost your Queen.” It wasn’t what you thought it was. It brings you clarity of mind and presence.

That’s why chess has skyrocketed since the quarantine. You get to play with your friends, you get to play with your neighbor and this builds not just a respect for your own intellect, you have respect for your opponents. When I first started the organization there was a San Jose rapper named Jay the Butcher who passed away not too long ago. He sent me a picture of a homeless man playing a Silicon Valley executive on the east side of San Jose in front of a hot dog store. And I said, “What happened?” The homeless guy you can see he’s got a cart with all kinds of dirty clothes and cans, he beat the Silicon Valley dude!

Why do you think the game resonates with so many hip-hop greats?

Because chess offers a life that honors those with the best thought. If you want to be someone who is honored by the merits of your thoughts and actions, you should be a chess player.

This is why RZA, this is why Will Smith, this is why Jay-Z is in Italian Vogue playing chess. People say “It’s not like everyone in hip-hop plays chess” absolutely true, because only the best play chess. Only the legends. If you want to be an average everyday ass rapper go ahead and leave the board down, let it be so another rapper can outdo you lyrically or in business. Chess has always been an integral part of the hip-hop experience, but not so people can pretend to be Bobby Fischer, and not so people can win tournaments. It’s so they can survive.

Hip hop Chess Federation is about how you take what you see on the board, and apply it to your life so you don’t get killed, so you don’t come up short, so you don’t make a deal that you shouldn’t take. So you don’t make a move at the job that you shouldn’t accept. This is why the top heads play it.

With this new quarantine lifestyle we’re living, what’s the strategy advice we should be focused on for adapting to this new world?

I don’t want to sound too alarmist and I don’t want to sound like a fear monger, but I think we are about to enter a new phase. A phase that’ll be akin to Spartan times, a phase that’ll be akin to the Wild West or Samurai era, things are very unstable, systematically. It doesn’t matter what you’ve been doing with your life, you’ve been negatively impacted with this.

Now we find ourselves indoors, we find ourselves unable to do a lot of the things that were not only fun to us, but unable to do the things that we defined ourselves by. Then we start questioning ourselves, like who am I? What am I about? This is a time where nothing except self-discipline is going to get your through. It’s easy to get lost on your phone, it’s easy to get lost on YouTube, it’s easy to get lost just in your own brain, thinking about stuff that’s not valuable.

So you see this time as an opportunity for self-improvement?

I see this as a time of self-refinement for all of us. Yes, you gotta be home right now. Yes, you don’t get to kick it with your friends the way you use to. Yes, you have to wear a mask when you just want to go to the store and get some gummy bears and some spring water. But this is also a time when you can absolutely be everything you tell your friends and family you would be if you weren’t at work, what you would be if you weren’t at school.

“Man don’t you know right now if I wasn’t in school I’d be hella fit,” but you put on 20 pounds since the quarantine.

“Man don’t you know I hate my job, I hate my manager, my boss sucks, man if it was up to me I’d just be learning coding right now, I’d be picking up over at Google, but I can’t do it because the job gotta be on lock.”

Job ain’t got you on lock, you ain’t coding nothing, you ain’t studying nothing, you ain’t reading nothing, and your diet is out of pocket.

This is the time when humanity can embrace more of what they say they are. I think your identity, no matter what your melanin content, no matter part of the planet you’re from, ultimately your identity is what you study and how you act. That’s who you really are. You can say that you’re a basketball player, but if you play more online than you practice in real life, you don’t really care about the game bruh, have a seat.

Self-actualization via quarantine?

This is the time when people can be the person that they’ve been afraid to be. The person that they’ve been saying they want to be. I’ve taken this time to meditate more, I’ve taken this time to exercise more, I’ve taken this time to read more. We need to come out of this pandemic way smarter than we went in. Stronger physically than when we went in. More disciplined than when we went in.

This thing has messed up my money, this thing has messed up my routine, my ability to see people that I love, but I’ve also had an opportunity to go inward, into myself and face my own fears and face my own shortcomings and build my strengths. I think that’s what a lot of people are missing that they can do for themselves at this time.

What would you say to the argument that it’s hard to grow when you’re struggling financially? How can you sustain that kind of self-exploration while you’re juggling your life and the stress of not being able to pay your bills?

Well, I kind of look at it like this: You may or may not be able to pay your bills but that doesn’t mean you can’t sit peacefully with yourself. You may not know where your next meal is coming from but that doesn’t mean you can’t be kind to someone else. Money or not, will you move with intent and virtue — will you be kind when you don’t have to someone who is very different from you? This is where I found myself. Like I said, my money is not exactly lit right now. But rather than get overwhelmed with “where am I actually gonna get money from?” Okay well let me just be silent within myself and you might find the discipline to go do something that will open the door for you in the future.

I’m not just reading books for me right now, I’m reading books for the future — okay COVID is up, what’s up? I can be more clear I can be more present. I suffer from that same situation of stress, but I don’t let it remove me from my own research. If you’re really worried about where your next check is coming from, then what are you studying? How many people have you called today to see if there is an opportunity for you to get something? Maybe you can work for a few hours at the food bank, get a check, and get some food on the way out. There are all kinds of things we can do and this is where discipline and refining our intention is so critical man.

The Los Angeles Lakers will re-embark on their quest to win the 2020 NBA title on Thursday when they face off against their chief threat to the West crown in the cross-town rival Clippers.

It’s the first game of the eight-game restart, which already led to some questions about the level of intensity that will be displayed on the court despite it being a possible conference finals preview. Now, it stands to reason that a little more of the shine might come off that opening night bubble showdown as Anthony Davis’ status for the contest is uncertain.

Davis was poked in the eye during the Lakers scrimmage with the Magic over the weekend and has been dealing with discomfort ever since, sitting out Monday’s scrimmage as well as Tuesday’s practice. After practice, Frank Vogel admitted there is some “concern” within the Lakers that Davis’ eye issue could keep him out of Thursday’s opener against the Clippers.

While this is far from a firm declaration of Davis being out, it does indicate that is a very real possibility, which would put a damper on the proceedings. Of course, for the Lakers, the first game of the restarted season means nothing in comparison to ensuring Davis is comfortable and at his best once the playoffs arrive in two weeks, so being cautious with their star big man will be more imperative than hurrying him onto the court for a regular season game that is unlikely to mean anything in the way of playoff seeding.

The list of great actors and actresses who never won an Emmy for playing an iconic character is long and depressing: Steve Carell as Michael Scott (The Office), Lauren Graham as Lorelai Gilmore (Gilmore Girls), Jason Alexander as George Costanza (Seinfeld), Phylicia Rashad as Claire Huxtable (The Cosby Show), Connie Britton as Tami Taylor (Friday Night Lights)… it goes on and on. One name that I thought would be taken off the list this morning is Rhea Seehorn, who is not only giving the best performance on our favorite show of 2020, Better Call Saul — she’s perhaps giving the best performance for anyone on television. And yet! The actress was again snubbed for an Emmy nomination, as were her co-stars Bob Odenkirk and Jonathan Banks. At least they’ve been up for an Emmy before before, though: Seehorn can’t even crack an Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series nomination, for some inexplicable reason.

Better Call Saul fans are not happy with this development.

The Emmys gave Outstanding Comedy Series to Modern Family for five straight years, so it’s obviously not a perfect system. But Seehorn’s snub is particularly egregious, because it seems so obvious. Or as Patton Oswalt put it, “If @rheaseehorn doesn’t get the Emmy for this season of @BetterCallSaul I just don’t know.” Us too, Patton. Us, too.

Oh well, at least we still have this.

You can find the complete list of Emmy nominations here.

The Oklahoma City Thunder weren’t expected to be much of a factor in the West this season after shipping its two top stars in Paul George and Russell Westbrook out of town in a shocking summer. The most talked about part of those trades was all of assets the Thunder got in return, with numerous future first round picks and a young, rising star in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Still, this was a roster with plenty of talent on it, at least for this season, with Chris Paul and Danilo Gallinari on board, but few expected both of those players to still be in Thunder blue by the time the trade deadline came and went.

Sam Presti made the decision to keep this group intact after a surprising run to what is currently a tie for the fifth spot in the West with Houston, and while questions remain on the horizon about what this roster will look like for the next few years, right now this team is far from a pushover as the season gets set to restart.

ROSTER

Steven Adams
Darius Bazley
Deonte Burton
Hamidou Diallo
Luguentz Dort
Terrance Ferguson
Danilo Gallinari
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Devon Hall
Kevin Hervey
Mike Muscala
Abdel Nader
Nerlens Noel
Chris Paul
Andre Roberson
Dennis Schröder

SCHEDULE

Saturday, Aug. 1 – 3:30 pm ET – vs. Utah Jazz
Monday, Aug. 3 – 4:00 pm ET – vs. Denver Nuggets
Wednesday, Aug. 5 – 6:00 pm ET – vs. Los Angeles Lakers
Friday, Aug. 7 – 4:00 pm ET – vs. Memphis Grizzlies
Sunday, Aug. 9 – 12:30 pm ET – vs. Washington Wizards
Monday, Aug. 10 – 2:30 pm ET – vs. Phoenix Suns
Wednesday, Aug. 12 – 8:00 pm ET – vs. Miami Heat
Friday, Aug. 14 – TBD – vs. Los Angeles Clippers

STANDINGS

1. Los Angeles Lakers: 49-14
2. Los Angeles Clippers: 44-20 (5.5)
3. Denver Nuggets: 43-22 (7.0)
4. Utah Jazz: 41-23 (8.5)
5. OKC Thunder: 40-24 (9.5)
6. Houston Rockets: 40-24 (9.5)
7. Dallas Mavericks: 40-27 (11.0)
8. Memphis Grizzlies: 32-33 (18.0)
9. Portland Trail Blazers: 29-37 (21.5)
10. New Orleans Pelicans: 28-36 (21.5)
11. Sacramento Kings: 28-36 (21.5)
12. San Antonio Spurs: 27-36 (22.0)
13. Phoenix Suns: 26-39 (24.0)

EXPECTATIONS

This will depend on the perspective. For the front office, success is likely defined by seeing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander getting key reps in a playoff setting and finding out if Dennis Schröder continues to look like the sixth-man of the year candidate he was prior to the hiatus. I think in the locker room, they’ll be setting their sights on getting to the conference semifinals and trying to stun one of the L.A. squads. Wherever they end up in the standings, they’ll likely be underdogs in a playoff series, but I think it’s reasonable to say they won’t be happy just to make it and be competitive in the first round. A trip to the second round is a fair expectation on the optimistic side, particularly given the presence of Paul and Gallinari.

X-Factor

It has to be Schröder, who has been a revelation this season after a summer that seemingly pushed him to the fringes with the addition of two new point guards in Paul and SGA. Instead, Billy Donovan has managed to make his three-guard rotation into one of the league’s most formidable backcourts, and Schröder suddenly looks like the player the Hawks hoped he could become when they made him their starter and traded Jeff Teague away. Schröder is having, by far, his best offensive season as a pro, as he averages 19 points per game on the best efficiency of his career — his 38.1 three-point percentage is a full three points higher than his previous career best mark. Schröder maintaining that form through the hiatus would not just be a huge lift for a Thunder team looking to get out of the first round, but would further indicate to the Thunder front office that this transformation is real as he enters a contract year next season.

Biggest On Court Question

Can they cobble together a wing rotation that can let them compete in the playoffs? That has been the weakness for this team, as they’ve leaned on some combination of Terrance Ferguson, Abdel Nader, Lugentz Dort, and Hamidou Diallo to make it work at the three spot (and some three-guard lineups that have been almost shockingly good), but against top teams in the postseason they’ll need more. Andre Roberson’s return might bring them some of that stability they need, as he’s looked solid in scrimmage action as he returns from a two-year layoff after complications during recovery from knee surgery. Roberson was once one of the league’s best defensive wing players and in scrimmage games he’s shown a revamped jump shot. He’s the other “x-factor” with Schröder, and if he can give them real minutes at a high level, they’re suddenly a much more competitive group.

After the roaring success of the latest episode of Verzuz with DMX and Snoop Dogg, the popular hit battle series show runners asked for suggestions on the next matchup on Twitter, getting a number of intriguing pairings in response. With the show’s popularity soaring, even some of hip-hop’s most legendary figures got involved, pitching their own dream matchups. The one that stood out most to fans, though, was Juicy J‘s. The Memphis crunk rap pioneer replied to Timbaland’s question with one of the more odd couple pairings yet: Juicy himself versus erstwhile New York crown holder Nas.

The tweet inevitably drew a massive response, garnering well over 3,000 retweets in less than a day, with fans already debating which of the two has the most material to bring to the table. While New Yorkers liked Nas’ chances, deriding Juicy’s more simplistic lyrics, others were quick to point out that not only does Juicy have just as many charting hits as Nas, he’s a regional treasure in the South and is even a Academy Award winner for the 2006 song “It’s Hard Out Here For A Pimp” from the film Hustle & Flow, which highlights a greater extension of his catalog with respect to his group work as a member of Three-6-Mafia.

Naturally, hip-hop fans are divided, which might just be what makes these hits “battles” seem so much fun — they are less about who wins and more about celebrating the rich and diverse tapestry of hip-hop history. This was especially highlighted during the “Battle of the Dogs” a week ago, when despite Snoop’s obvious hits advantage, the true draw was watching two legends pay homage to one another and enjoy themselves like a pair of drunk uncles at a family reunion. So, yeah, set it up. Nas vs. Juicy J is exactly the cultural exchange project needed to bring the hip-hop family that much closer together.

As music festivals cancel their 2020 summer events, some, like Lollapalooza, are pivoting to virtual streaming events. While Lollapalooza’s co-founder doesn’t believe large-scale live events will be able to return until 2022, many organizers are staying optimistic for next year and have chosen to already unveil their 2021 lineups. Rolling Loud Portugal announced its lineup for next summer, and it boasts some big names.

Taking place at Playa de la Roca, Portugal from July 6 to 8, Rolling Loud has invited ASAP Rocky, Future, and Wiz Khalifa to headline their three-day event. The festival has confirmed other artists like City Girls, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, DaBaby, Gucci Mane, Gunna, Meek Mill, Young Thug, Lil Uzi Vert, Nav, Playboi Carti, Polo G, Chief Keef, and many more to perform. The festival’s bill also includes “surprise guests” which have yet to be announced.

The lineup announcement arrives after Rolling Loud Portugal canceled this year’s inaugural event, citing “concern for the health and safety of our fans, artists, staff and local communities.” Rolling Loud Portugal 2020 was slated to be the first-ever European edition of the hip-hop festival. “For months and months we had been looking forward to raging with all of you from around the world,” organizers wrote in a statement.

See Rolling Loud Portugal’s full 2021 lineup above.

Tickets for Rolling Loud Portugal are on sale Friday, July 31. Get them here.

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

A lot of artists have used their time in lockdown to be productive, and one of them is Lauv. A month ago, he dropped a surprise EP, Without You, which he worked on while in quarantine. He shared a video for the EP-opening track, “Dishes,” and now he is back with a new visual for the four-song collection’s closer, “Love Somebody.”

The video mostly consists of Lauv hugging a love interest, whose face the viewer never sees, as he sings the emotional track. On the chorus, Lauv explains his unfortunate tendency to sabotage relationships that seem to be going well, singing, “Every time I think I love somebody / Always find a way to throw it all away / I don’t ever wanna hurt nobody / I don’t wanna be the one to say / That we gotta have a conversation / I don’t wanna watch the tears roll down your face / No, I hurt you and I, I’m sorry / All I wanted was to love somebody.”

Between “Dishes” and “Love Somebody,” Lauv linked up with Ellie Goulding for a big-time collaboration, “Slow Grenade.” The song is set to appear on Goulding’s upcoming album, Brightest Blue, which comes out this fall.

Watch the “Love Somebody” video above.

This year at the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards, anything could truly happen during the September 20, 2020 ceremony. It’s already a completely different year where the ceremony will be virtual, but the categories will see a major shakeup from the days when Game Of Thrones and Veep dominated the drama and comedy categories, respectively speaking. One of the more interesting parts of this year’s ceremony, though, should be the Limited Series categories. From HBO’s Watchmen to FX on Hulu’s Devs to Netflix’s Unbelievable, the competition looks to be fierce in both the overall and acting categories.

What can we expect from dramas? More than likely, Better Call Saul will do well on the AMC prestige front with Succession and Westworld representing for HBO, but don’t count out Ozark or The Crown from Netflix, along with Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale and BBC America’s Killing Eve. Apple TV+ might also have a few nominations up its sleeve from either The Morning Show or Defending Jacob. On the comedy side of things, one should expect The Good Place and Schitt’s Creek (both of which which recently said goodbye), along with The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, to put up a strong showings. Perhaps Ramy and Insecure will draw nods, and don’t count out Dead To Me from Netflix.

Here’s the complete list of nominees, as announced by Laverne Cox, Josh Gad, Tatiana Maslany, and Television Academy Chairman and CEO Frank Scherma (with host Leslie Jones). The Emmys will air on Sunday, September 2020.

This list is being updated…

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Don Cheadle, Black Monday
Ted Danson, The Good Place
Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method
Eugene Levy, Schitt’s Creek
Ramy Youssef, Ramy

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Christina Applegate, Dead to Me
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Linda Cardellini, Dead to Me
Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek
Issa Rae, Insecure
Traces Ellis Ross, Black-ish

Outstanding Variety Talk Series
The Daily Show
Full Frontal
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Last Week Tonight
The Late Show

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K Brown, This Is Us
Steve Carell, The Morning Show
Brian Cox, Succession
Billy Porter, Pose
Jeremy Strong, Succession

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series
Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show
Olivia Colman, The Crown
Jodie Comer, Killing Eve
Laura Linney, Ozark
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve
Zendaya, Euphoria

Outstanding Competition Program
The Masked Singer
Nailed It!
RuPaul’s Drag Race
Top Chef
The Voice

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Limited Series Or Movie
Jeremy Irons, Watchmen
Hugh Jackman, Bad Education
Paul Mescal, Normal People
Jeremy Pope, Hollywood
Mark Ruffalo, I Know This Much Is True

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Limited Series Or Movie
Cate Blanchette, Mrs. America
Shira Haas, Unorthodox
Regina King, Watchmen
Octavia Spencer, Self Made
Kerry Washington, Little Fires Everywhere

Outstanding Limited Series
Little Fires Everywhere
Mrs. America
Unbelievable
Unorthodox
Watchmen

Outstanding Comedy Series
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Dead to Me
SNL
Insecure
The Kominsky Method
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Schitt’s Creek
What We Do in the Shadows

Outstanding Drama Series
Better Call Saul
The Crown
The Handmaid’s Tale
Killing Eve
The Mandalorian
Ozark
Stranger Things
Succession

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie
Hugh Jackman, Bad Education
Jeremy Pope, Hollywood
Mark Ruffalo, I Know This Much Is True
Paul Mescal, Normal People
Jeremy Irons, Watchmen

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Andre Braugher, Brooklyn Nine-Nine
William Jackson Harper, The Good Place
Alan Arkin, The Kominsky Method
Sterling K. Brown, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Tony Shalhoub, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Mahershala Ali, Ramy
Kenan Thompson, SNL
Daniel Levy, Schitt’s Creek

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Outstanding Reality-Competition Program

Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series

Outstanding Writing For A Drama Series

Outstanding Variety Sketch Series

Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program

Nominees for the remaining categories can be found here.

According to a recent report from The New York Times, the 2000s alt-rock band Yellowcard has quietly dropped its lawsuit against the estate of the late Chicago rapper Juice WRLD over his breakout hit “Lucid Dreams.” In October, the band filed suit against Juice for allegedly copying the melody of Yellowcard’s 2006 song “Holly Wood Died” without permission, asking for $15 million in damages.

However, before the case was even truly underway, Juice died of an accidental overdose at Chicago’s Midway Airport. While that might have been the end of it, the members of Yellowcard wanted to pursue the case despite his death, which prompted even more issues. In February, it was revealed that no manager had been appointed over Juice’s posthumous legal matters, leading a court to suspend the case 10 days later.

The Times now says, though, that new court documents were issued Monday to withdraw the case. Christine Lepera, a lawyer for Juice’s estate said there was no settlement and the credits of “Lucid Dreams” remain unchanged from when Sting was added and given 85% of the song’s royalties as it samples his hit “Shape Of My Heart.”

The credited reason for the band’s change of heart? Juice’s mother, Carmela Wallace, was finally officially appointed his legal representative a few weeks ago. Richard S. Busch, Yellowcard’s lawyer, said in a statement: My clients are very sympathetic not only of Juice WRLD’s death but also needed time to decide whether they really wanted to pursue the case against his grieving mother as the personal representative of his estate.” While Busch notes that the case can be refiled at a later date, between pitting themselves against Wallace and only having about 15% of available royalties, it might not be worth it.

Check out both songs, “Lucid Dreams” and “Holly Wood Died,” above.