Warning: This post includes a major spoiler for The Empire Strikes Back, a movie you may have already seen.

Last week The Empire Strikes Back turned 40. Mazel tov! There was much rejoicing over social media and in online publications, not the least from one of social media’s most popular figures, Mark Hamill. One would assume that a carcass as popular as the first Star Wars sequel would have been picked to death by now, all its secrets made public. But there’s still tiny trivia morsels to be had, as Hamill proved Sunday.

It’s long been well-known, of course, that the Empire Strikes Back top brass managed to keep its big twist a secret up until wide release through simple deceit: When shooting the climactic duel between Hamill’s Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, the major reveal was that Obi-Wan Kenobi had killed his father, not that his father was Vader himself. But we didn’t know that Hamill was one of only three people, along with George Lucas and director Irvin Kirshner, who knew the truth that early. And keeping stum about that, Hamill said, was “agony.”

Hamill only revealed this after a fan (with the handle “Mark Hamill fangirl,” as it were) tweeted that she “would’ve also liked to have seen the cast/crew’s reaction when they first heard about this epic plot twist.” For that matter, how did everyone react when Vader actor David Prowse blurted out that Alec Guinness’ kindly Obi-Wan was a papa killer? That’s a bombshell, too!

(Via EW)

Lana Del Rey found herself on the wrong side of internet outrage over the past few days, as she received a lot of backlash over comments she made about the chart success of other female musicians. She has since spent some time trying to make her side of the story clear, and she has done so again today with a new six-minute video.

Speaking to the camera, she addressed the controversy at length, closing the video and summarizing her overall point by saying:

“I barely ever share a thing, and this is why. And the reason why I’m making this post — and I know it seems a bit much, right? — but there are women out there like me who have so much to give and don’t quite get to the place spiritually or karmically where they’re supposed to be because there are other women who hate them and try and take them down. Whether in my case it’s certain alternative singers or mal-intented journalists or men who hate women. But I’m not the enemy, and I’m definitely not racist, so don’t get it twisted. Nobody gets to tell your story except for you.”

In the clip, by the way, she also reveals that her upcoming album is titled Chemtrails Over The Country Club.

Shortly after sharing the video, Del Rey posted a spoken-word poem titled “Patent Leather Do-Over.” The Sylvia Plath-inspired piece begins, “Sylvia — I knew what you meant when you talked about swimming in the ocean and leaving your patent leather black shoes pointing towards it, while you swam.”

Listen to “Patent Leather Do-Over” above, and read the full transcript of her other video below.

“Hey, so I don’t wanna beat a dead horse and I don’t wanna go on and on about this post, but I just wanna remind you that in that post, my one and only personal declaration I’ve ever made — thanks for being so warm and welcoming — was about the need for fragility in the feminist movement. It’s gonna be important. And when I mention women who look like me, I didn’t mean white like me, I mean the kind of women who other people might not believe because they think, ‘Oh, well look at her, she f*ckin’ deserves it,’ or whatever. There’s a lot of people like that, you know? And I just think it’s sad that the women I mentioned, whether they sing about dancing for money or whatever, the same stuff, by the way, that I’ve been singing about, chronicling for 13 years. That’s why I’m in that echelon. Yes, they are my friends and peers and contemporaries. The difference is when I get on the pole, people call me a whore, but when [FKA] Twigs gets on the pole, it’s art. So, I’m reminded constantly by my friends that lyrically, there are layers, complicated psychological factors that play into some of my songwriting.

But I just want to say, the culture is super sick right now, and the fact that they want to turn my quotes, my advocacy for fragility into a race war? It’s really bad. It’s actually really bad. Especially when in that same declaration, I was talking again about the idea of how important it is to make reparations for me to the Navajo community, because they touched me so much in my youth, and that I believe in personal reparations because it’s the right thing to do. I think what’s really sad is as a personal advocate, as a girl’s girl, as somebody who wants the best for every culture — you know, what Marianne Williamson was talking about — reparations to the black community that never got done during the emancipation period. That was why I liked her, because I always felt that way.

So I just want to say to all of the other women out there who are like me, good girls, good-intentioned, who get f*cked up the ass constantly by the culture just because you say what you really mean, I’m with you, I feel for you, and I know that you feel for me. And I’m super strong. You can call me whatever. I’m sorry that I didn’t add one caucasian, 100 percent caucasian person into the mix of the women that I admire. But you know, it really says more about you than it does about me. And I think that what’s interesting, it’s the very first time that I decided to tell you anything about my life or the fact that I’m writing books that chronicle that fragility, that 200,000 hateful, spiteful comments come in, and my phone number leaked, and — comments like, ‘You f*cking white b*tch.’ It’s the opposite of the spirit of an advocate. It’s what pauses fragility. But it’s not gonna stop me, period.

So I just want to say, nobody gets to tell your story except for you, even if that means it’s kinda messy like this along the way, ’cause unfortunately, when you have a good heart, it doesn’t always shine through, and you trudge on anyway. You make those personal reparations to heal your own family karmic lineage and the sickness of this country: domestic abuse, mental health problems is the second epidemic that’s arising out of this pandemic. It’s a real thing. That’s what I was talking about.

So, as ever I’m grateful that my muse is still here and that I have, over the last three years, been blessed to have the insight and ability to channel two books’ worth of beautiful poems. And I think my new record, Chemtrails Over The Country Club, is special as well. And I’m sorry that a couple of the girls I talked to who are mentioned in that post have a super different opinion of my insight, especially because we’ve been so close for so long. But it really, again, makes you reach into the depth of your own heart and say, ‘Am I good-intentioned?’ And of course for me the answer is always yes.

I barely ever share a thing, and this is why. And the reason why I’m making this post — and I know it seems a bit much, right? — but there are women out there like me who have so much to give and don’t quite get to the place spiritually or karmically where they’re supposed to be because there are other women who hate them and try and take them down. Whether in my case it’s certain alternative singers or mal-intented journalists or men who hate women. But I’m not the enemy, and I’m definitely not racist, so don’t get it twisted. Nobody gets to tell your story except for you. And that’s what I’m gonna do in the next couple books. So God bless and… yeah, f*ck off if you don’t like the post.”

BBC America’s ‘Killing Eve’ first framed itself as procedural: a show about assassins and the UK’s Secret Intelligence Service that attempts to take them down. More than that, though, the show tangoed through an elaborate cat-and-mouse game between Jodie Comer’s assassin and Sandra Oh’s MI6 agent. This season, that game evolves for the better, and our weekly coverage will keep an eye on how this show’s transforming, and it (along with those kills) is only growing bolder with the passage of time.

Recently on Killing Eve, we learned that Eve’s long-suffering husband, Niko, somehow survived a pitchfork attack (actor Owen McDonnell was surprised, too). That episode also dove into Villanelle’s increasing unhappiness with assassin life (she earns the label “Beautiful Monster” this week from her new The Twelve boss) and magnificently brought together the ways that Konstantin’s scheming tactics are coming back to bite him in the duplicitous butt. This week, Konstantin has realized the error of his ways, and he nearly meets his demise. He’s not the only one to almost die this episode, and there’s one character who’s not-so-lucky. Yep, the cat-and-mouse game takes a professed backseat, while the grim reaper takes three swipes with one deadly success.

1. Konstantin: He’s no longer wearing the face of denial after a four-point takedown from Villanelle (who guilt-tripped him into helping her leave The Twelve); Carolyn (who booted him out of a car after a revelation of their past affair); Paul (who’s willing to throw him under the bus the assassination of Charles Kruger’s wife); and Irina (who illuminated his terrible dad skills by transforming into a killer before his eyes). As a result, Konstantin realizes what a terrible life he’s been leading and figuratively pummels himself.

“I used you to spy on your mother,” he admits to Geraldine when she becomes the third person (after Villanelle and Paul) to scare the bejesus out of him this season. I’m almost feeling sorry for him on that note. He’s a god-awful person, but damn, it’s a stone-cold move to hide in the dark to give someone a fright, and everyone’s doing it to him. Geraldine leaves their confrontation (where she receives confirmation that he was using her for Carolyn-related intel) while wishing Konstantin dead. In turn, he concedes that it’s possible that she’ll get her wish. Oh boy, he has no idea what’s coming next.

After ranting to Villanelle about how he deserves to die, death indeed takes a pass at the assassin handler. “I’m a prick,” he argues at the train station. “And the only thing I’m waiting for is another prick… another prick to…” Aaaand what happens next is slightly nebulous. Villanelle wonders if he’s faking a heart attack, which doesn’t seem likely. The heart attack appears to be real after hospital confirmation, but there’s a nagging detail here that makes me want to be a Killing Eve conspiracy theorist. Did that random guy really bump into Konstantin by accident? Moments after Konstantin jokes about that guy, he suggests that some “prick” should take him out, and then he collapses. Is it possible that “a prick” did indeed give Konstantin “a prick”? Paul wants him dead, after all, and The Twelve might collectively want it, too.

I’m probably overthinking the prick-subject because it’s far more likely that Konstantin had a simple heart attack. At least he receives some apparent tenderness from Villanelle. Yes, she’s a sociopath and previously tried to kill Konstantin, and she’s worried about where he put the money. Yet she does make it a point to express her wish for him to stay alive. That’s huge for her.

Well, Konstantin lived — great news for viewers because he’s one hell of a character — and could not stop laughing over a nurse’s inquiry about “increased stress,” but look who got the last laugh of the episode.

2. Dasha: The former Russian assassin GOAT also ends the episode in a hospital bed, after somehow surviving two attempts on her life: (1) Villanelle’s golf-club assassination swing; (2) Eve’s vengeful lung-crushing stance. The first effort would have been a hit on the direction of The Twelve after Villanelle, seeking to prove her continued worth to the organization, delivered a stinger of a line (“I took a shit in her shoe when I was three… a really big one”) about her mother. Man, Villanelle is not-so-great at sticking around to see if people (from her inner circle) are actually dead after she tries to kill them.

The follow-up effort is born from Eve’s fury after Dasha (either delirious or fully alert, it’s hard to tell) starts raving about Niko’s “lovely mustache… like Stalin.” And now, perhaps Eve is becoming a “beautiful monster” as well? Those ribs were crackin.’

These could have been Dasha’s last words, had Eve (after receiving confirmation of who executed the pitchfork attack) not fled with the sounds of an approaching siren. Dasha survives, obviously, but here’s who didn’t make it out of this week alive.

3. Mo: This poor guy. He’s awkwardly endured Carolyn’s bathtime meeting, and he’s finally uncovered proof that Paul’s linked to The Twelve. All Mo wanted was to end a stressful work day with an omelette and a bath, but instead, he ends up swimming with the fishes, courtesy of The Twelve. It’s a relatively low-stakes death for the show (sorry, Mo, but you’re no Kenny), all things considered, but news of his demise does propel Carolyn into new, volatile territory.

Loose Ends:

– Villanelle and Eve catch a glimpse of each other in the train station and give each other a little wave. Frankly, I’m a little over this dynamic and am relieved that the writers aren’t devoting much screentime to their mutual obsession. Even Villanelle attempts to tell Eve (though it may have been a taunt) that they’re seriously bad news for each other, but their separation can’t last forever. We’re almost in season-finale land, which could bring their story back into the spotlight.

– Irina’s not looking remorseful by any stretch of the imagination. She’s not simply “a little sh*t taking a sh*t on a big sh*t and three sh*ts combined into one enormous sh*t.” She’s an unrepentant, psychotic sh*t. I wonder if Konstantin never intended to return for his daughter, though I could be wrong, and we may never find out the answer to that question with him in the hospital.

– Carolyn’s outburst was a relief to see, since it’s been a long time coming for Carolyn to show any emotion. Only one episode remains until we see if M16 or the Bitter Pill gets to the bottom of who killed Kenny, but beyond that, there’s still the mystery of his parentage to be solved. We don’t have a clear timeline, but clearly, Kenny was not only digging for answers on The Twelve but also searching for part of himself. Is Konstantin his dad? Who knows, but isn’t it fitting that the jester is the common thread for this season’s messes? We’ll find out whether he pays the ultimate price in next week’s season finale.

BBC America’s ‘Killing Eve’ airs on Sundays at 9:00 PM EST with simulcasting on AMC.

For the last several weeks, it has looked like Bay Area rapper G-Eazy was gearing up for a project as he released a string of singles including “Still Be Friends,” “Moana,” and pair of lo-fi covers of songs from Radiohead and The Beatles. Today, G-Eazy confirmed that he has a full-length album coming out, revealing the title, cover, and release date on his social media. It’s called Everything’s Strange Here, it’s due on June 5, and you can see the cover artwork in the Instagram post below.

Eazy accompanied the announcement with the release of a new music video, “Free Porn, Cheap Drugs,” which keeps to the themes of his prior singles. It’s got a hazy, alt-rock vibe — similar to the crooning covers he released earlier this year — and the video has a retro, VHS-inspired look to it, documenting Gerald’s days and nights out in the city as he fantasizes about running away to Montana in the lyrics.

Of course, porn and drugs have also featured pretty prominently in his previous music — including both of his aforementioned music videos, which starred members of Vixen’s “angels” promotional team. G-Eazy’s last album, 2017’s The Beautiful & Damned, also addressed his life of excess. Judging from the latest single, it would seem he wants to slow down — but videos full of porn stars suggest that he isn’t quite ready to leave his debauching ways behind just yet.

Watch the video for “Free Porn, Cheap Drugs” above.

Everything’s Strange Here is due 6/5 on RCA Records.

A new episode of Killing Eve aired last night, and Taylor Swift fans were certainly delighted to hear “Look What You Made Me Do” during the episode. It wasn’t Swift’s original version of the song, though. Instead, the track was performed by a band called Jack Leopards And The Dolphin Club. That group isn’t exactly a household name, and Swift’s fans think something is going on here.

Swift shared a snippet of the song, about which she is “VERY STOKED,” and fans think that Swift was actually involved in the recording. This cover is the first and only known song by Jack Leopards And The Dolphin Club, and fans believe the vocals are sung by Swift’s brother Austin; He once named his Twitter account “The Dolphin Club.” Additionally, the song’s credited producers are Nils Sjöberg, Swift’s songwriting alias, and Swift collaborator Jack Antonoff.

The supposed reason for all this trouble is so Swift’s former label Big Machine, which owns the rights to the song, won’t receive any royalties from it, since Swift isn’t officially involved.

Swift, of course, hasn’t confirmed any of this, but she is known for leaving easter eggs for her fans to fan. The Nils Sjöberg credit is all some fans needed to be convinced that Swift is behind Jack Leopards And The Dolphin Club.

Listen to the Jack Leopards And The Dolphin Club rendition of “Look What You Made Me Do” above.

Doja Cat found herself in some hot water over the weekend after controversial videos and songs from her past surfaced. The material in question included videos of her using racial slurs in Tinychat conversations and a 2015 song named after a racial slur used by members of the alt-right. Now, Doja has offered an apology.

She shared a message on Instagram, noting that she “shouldn’t have been on some of those chat room sites,” and saying that the aforementioned song was an attempt to “flip [the word’s] meaning,” but ultimately called it a “bad decision.” She wrote:

“I want to address what’s been happening on Twitter.

I’ve used public chat rooms to socialize since I was a child. I shouldn’t have been on some of those chat room sites, but I personally have never been involved in any racist conversations. I’m sorry to everyone that I offended.

I’m a black woman. Half of my family is black from South Africa and I’m very proud of where I come from.

As for the old song that’s resurfaced, it was in no way tied to anything outside of my own personal experience. It was written in response to people who often used that term to hurt me. I made an attempt to flip its meaning, but recognize that it was a bad decision to use the term in my music.

I understand my influence and impact and I’m taking this all very seriously. I love you all and I’m sorry for upsetting or hurting any of you. That’s not my character, and I’m determined to show that to everybody moving forward. Thank you.”

Read Doja’s full message above and below.

---

View Entire Post ›

Grimes and Elon Musk have found themselves in the headlines over the past month or so due to their recently born bundle of joy. Grimes gave birth to her and Musk’s first child together, and they named the boy X Æ A-12. Not long after that name was revealed, some people realized that the atypical name seems to be illegal according to California law, so it remained to be seen if Grimes and Musk would have to make an adjustment. Now it appears they have.

Last night, Grimes posted a photo of herself on Instagram, and somebody asked in the comments, “Did you change the baby name because of Californian laws ? What is the bby’s new name?” Grimes responded, “X Æ A-Xii.”

However, even though the numbers have been removed from the name, it still may not be legally permissible. The “Æ” may have to be changed to “AE” or something else, as family law attorney David Glass recently noted, “In California, you can only use the ’26 characters’ of the English language in your baby name. Thus, you can’t have numbers, Roman numerals, accents, umlauts, or other symbols or emojis.”

As for how to say the name, Grimes and Musk have offered two different explanations. Grimes said earlier this month, “It’s just X, like the letter X. Then A.I. Like how you said the letter A then I.” Meanwhile, Musk told Joe Rogan, “So, it’s just X, the letter X, and then the Æ is pronounced ‘Ash.’”

---

View Entire Post ›

Catch me slow-dancing to K-Ci & JoJo’s “All My Life” with my bottle of multi-surface spray.

---

View Entire Post ›