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Last week, Snoop Dogg shocked the world with an announcement he shared on social media, writing, “After much consideration & conversation with my family, I’ve decided to give up smoke. Please respect my privacy at this time.” The logical first leap to be made there is that the post was Snoop declaring he was giving up weed. After thinking about it for a second, though, it felt more like Snoop was setting up some sort of product rollout or brand partnership (edibles, perhaps?).

Now, we know for certain that it was the latter (albeit not edibles): Today (November 20), Snoop shared an ad for Solo Stove, a smokeless fire pit company. On Instagram, he wrote, “I’m done with smoke. I’m going smokeless with @solostove. #ad.”

The video he shared is a close-up of Snoop that slowly zooms out to reveal he’s sitting in front of a Solo Stove. Meanwhile, he says, “I have an announcement: I’m giving up smoke. I know what you thinkin’: ‘Snoop, smoke is kind of your whole thing!’ But I’m done with it. I’m done with the coughing and my clothes smelling all sticky-icky. I’m going smokeless. Solo Stove fixed fire. They took out the smoke: Clever.”

Per a press release, Snoop, the company’s official “smokesman,” said, “I love a good fire outside, but the smoke was too much. Solo Stove fixed fire and took out the smoke. They changed the game and now I’m excited to spread the love and stay warm with my friends and family.”

Snoop is teaming up with the brand to design a signature line of Snoop Dogg x Solo Stove products. First (and available now for $420, here) is a limited edition bundle that includes a Bonfire Fire Pit designed by Snoop, a fire pit stand, a Snoop bucket hat, and a Snoop x Solo sticker pack.

It remains to be seen if the rappers Snoop Dogg inspired will follow through with giving up weed.

Earlier this month, John Oliver threw his full weight behind one of the most critical elections on the planet: The New Zealand “Bird of the Year” contest. Forest & Bird, the conservation group what runs the annual contest, had no idea what it was in for when it gave Oliver their blessing to launch his campaign, which even the comedian himself called “alarmingly aggressive.”

During an episode of Last Week Tonight, Oliver mounted a now-viral push to make the pūteketeke the 2023 winner, and the response was overwhelming. Thousands of people crashed the voting site, and the results had to be delayed as Forest & Bird sifted through the chaos. Although, the group didn’t mind the hassle.

“It’s been pretty crazy, in the best possible way,” Chief Executive Nicola Toki told the Associated Press.

To the surprise of no one, Oliver’s outsized attention rocketed the pūteketeke to victory as the crested glebe won 290,374 out of 350,000 votes. Typically, the Bird of the Year contest only receives about 65,000 votes at best. Obviously, that changed once Oliver went nuts backing the mulleted bird.

“Pūteketeke began as an outside contender for Bird of the Century but was catapulted to the top spot thanks to its unique looks, adorable parenting style, and propensity for puking,” Toki said in a statement via The Guardian. “We’re not surprised these charming characteristics caught the eye of an influential bird enthusiast with a massive following.”

New Zealand’s national bird, the North Island brown kiwi, did come in second. However, with only 12,904 votes, it was a distant, distant second.

(Via The Guardian)

If there’s been one constant in Adele’s life over the past couple years, it’s talk about her and sports agent Rich Paul, her boyfriend… or perhaps husband? Over the weekend, she reportedly confirmed she and Paul and married.

As Metro reports, Adele attended friend Alan Carr’s stand-up show in Los Angeles, and during his set, he apparently asked if anybody in the audience had gotten married recently. According to supposed audience members who were in attendance, Adele reportedly shouted in response, “I did!”

It’s worth being at least a little skeptical here, though. Video or audio of Adele’s supposed proclamation has yet to surface. Furthermore, the source of the fan comments is Deuxmoi, a social media account focused on celebrity gossip. On top of that, even if Adele did say what she is reported to have said, she’s long been known to have a good sense of humor and she was at a comedy show, so it’s possible she was joking around and playing into all the rumors about her and Paul.

Whatever the case, Adele did refer to Paul as her “husband” back in September. Then, in October, Paul dodged (but didn’t deny) a question about all the marriage rumors. So, until one of them gives a straightforward and straight-faced answer on the record, who knows?

This week’s Fear The Walking Dead episode brought that long-suffering series to an end with an answer to a pressing question, and Daryl Dixon is between ass-kicking seasons, so the next logical question from The Walking Dead fans is this: when will we see Rick Grimes again?

More specifically, that would be a question about when Rick Grimes (looking like hell) will surface when Michonne rescues his tush in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live? No one can expect Rick to look like sunshine and roses (or Keanu Reeves next to Norman Reedus) after all that time under CRM control, even if they did save his life after his last horse debacle. Yet at least AMC answered the “when” question, so the official countdown can begin.

February 25 will be that day, which is slightly surprising because I imagined that this show would try for a Valentine’s Day-themed reunion between these long-lost lovers. Also, it sure sounds like Morgan will catch up with them as well, since he was looking for Rick in the FTWD finale, but Morgan doesn’t receive a mention (rude) in The Ones Who Live‘s synopsis:

The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live presents an epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance. By an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead… And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they’ve ever known before? Are they enemies? Lovers? Victims? Victors? Without each other, are they even alive — or will they find that they, too, are the Walking Dead?

Again, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live debuts on February 25.

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is the fifth (and arguably best) Hunger Games movie, but first without Jennifer Lawrence. Instead of Katniss Everdeen, the prequel follows Lucy Gray Baird, played by West Side Story breakout (and big-time Taylor Swift fan) Rachel Zegler. She met Lawrence for the first time a couple of weeks ago at Paris Fashion Week, where the Oscar winner threatened to strangle her.

Lawrence was kidding, of course… Or maybe that’s what she wants Zegler to think? You gotta do what you gotta do to win the Hunger Games.

“We were at Paris Fashion Week for the Dior show only a couple weeks ago. I didn’t want to be weird. I was just kind of psyching myself up to talk to her. She was so unbelievably kind,” Zegler said during a recent episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show. While she was talking, the episode showed a clip of the two of them laughing at the event. “In that clip, [Jennifer is] actually saying, ‘Let’s do another photo where I’m strangling you and saying you’ll never take my part!’ And that’s exactly what I wanted from her,” Zegler said.

You can watch The Kelly Clarkson Show clip above.

(Via Variety)

Over the past few years, Shakira has had a dark cloud hanging over her: a tax fraud case in Spain. The opening day of the trial took place in Barcelona today (November 20), and as the Associated Press reports, Shakira accepted a last-minute deal with prosecutors.

Shakira acknowledged the six counts of failing to pay the Spanish government 14.5 million euros (about $15.8 million) in taxes between 2012 and 2014. Per the deal, she is set to receive a suspended three-year sentence and pay a fine of 7.3 million euros (about $8 million), as well as a fine of 432,000 euros (about $472,000) in exchange for the suspended sentence. The trial ended after just eight minutes.

Previously, prosecutors said they would seek an eight-year prison sentence and a fine of 24 million euros ($26 million).

In a statement released through a representative, Shakira explained her reasoning for settling, saying, “I have made the decision to finally resolve this matter with the best interest of my kids at heart, who do not want to see their mom sacrifice her personal well-being in this fight. I need to move past the stress and emotional toll of the last several years and focus on the things I love, my kids, and all the opportunities to come in my career.”

Singer and Daisy Jones & The Six actress Suki Waterhouse just confirmed she’s pregnant: At the Corona Capital Festival in Mexico yesterday (November 19), she gestured to her stomach and said, “I’m extra sparkly today because I thought it might distract you from something else that’s going on.” This comes after paparazzi photos from earlier this month first sparked pregnancy rumors. Waterhouse has been romantically linked with Twilight star Robert Pattinson for years now.

How Long Have Suki Waterhouse And Robert Pattinson Been Dating?

The two were first linked in July 2018, when the two were spotted kissing in London after seeing Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again in theaters before going to the SoHo House in Notting Hill for drinks, People notes. At the time, a source told Us Weekly that the two “have been dating for months.”

Pattinson first publicly acknowledged the relationship in an April 2019 interview with Elle. He was reluctant to discuss it but did say, “If you let people in, it devalues what love is. If a stranger on the street asked you about your relationship, you’d think it extremely rude. If you put up a wall, it ends up better. I can’t understand how someone can walk down the street holding hands, and it’s the same as when I do it and a hundred people are taking your photo. The line between when you’re performing and when you’re not will eventually get washed away and you’ll go completely mad.”

In an interview with The Sunday Times this February (as CNN reports), Waterhouse said of her and Pattinson’s relationship, “I’m shocked that I’m so happy with someone for nearly five years. […] I’m always incredibly excited when I see his name pop up [on my phone] or even a text, and I think he feels the same about me. We’ve always got so much to say, and I find him hilarious.”

Towards the start of November, paparazzi photos of Suki Waterhouse sparked speculation that the singer/actress/model was pregnant. That all went unconfirmed until this weekend, when Waterhouse herself made the news official on stage.

As People notes, Waterhouse was performing at the Corona Capital Festival in Mexico yesterday (November 19), and she explained her flashy outfit, telling the audience, “I’m extra sparkly today because I thought it might distract you from something else that’s going on. I’m not sure if it’s working.” As she spoke, she lifted open a flap of her jacket and gestured towards her stomach.

Waterhouse and Twilight star Robert Pattinson were first romantically linked back in the summer of 2018, so they’ve been together for about five years now. The two started living together in London in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an interview with The Sunday Times this past February (as CNN notes), she said of her and Pattinson’s relationship, “I’m shocked that I’m so happy with someone for nearly five years. […] I’m always incredibly excited when I see his name pop up [on my phone] or even a text, and I think he feels the same about me. We’ve always got so much to say, and I find him hilarious.”

Waterhouse released her debut album, I Can’t Let Go, in May 2022, and followed it up with an EP, Milk Teeth, that November. She also had a role in the 2023 Prime Video series Daisy Jones & The Six.

The halfcourt shot contest at Lakers games is among the most lucrative in all of the NBA, as fans can win considerable cash as part of the Lakers promo with MGM that pays more than $50,000 for a made 46-foot shot.

Unfortunately for a Lakers fan named Anthony on Sunday night, his effort at the $55,000 on the line became potentially catastrophic as he suffered an injury — one that, sadly, looks a lot like an Achilles — as he let go of his shot, hopped awkwardly inside the three-point line and fell down clutching his calf area. He would get up and try walking off on his own power, but needed some assistance and was not able to continue the promo to shoot the three-pointer after the halfcourt heave.

This is truly my nightmare as someone who is getting older and sometimes forgets about that fact until I try to do something without warming up and my body says “no.” You would never think you would need to stretch or warm up for a halfcourt shot after being plucked out of the stands, right up until something like this happens. To suffer a potentially major injury on a halfcourt shot contest that should be a highlight of your year (or, at worst, a funny clip your friends will roast you with on a bad miss) is brutal and hopefully this looked worse than it really is for him.

Sunday’s game between the Suns and Jazz in Salt Lake City wasn’t expected by many to be the craziest game of the early season, but the two teams ended up producing a wild double overtime thriller that ended at the review monitor.

Kevin Durant (39 points, 10 assists, 8 rebounds) and Lauri Markkanen (38 points and 17 rebounds) put on quite the show for their respective teams as they went back-and-forth all night, and fittingly, they were the two battling on the final play that got sent to review by a Suns challenge. After a pair of Devin Booker free throws made it a three-point game with 0.9 seconds left, the Jazz advanced the ball and setup a similar play to what the Thunder ran to force OT the other night against the Warriors, but with Markkanen in the Chet Holmgren role.

In live action, Durant’s contest of Markkanen’s spinning three got ruled a foul, sending Lauri to the line for three free throws to potentially force triple overtime. However, upon review it was determined Durant got ball first before any contact on the wrist, making it a clean block and ending the game at 140-137 in the Suns favor.

Prior to that, the end of both regulation and the first overtime were also ridiculous, as Markkanen forced overtime with a layup after Durant blocked a Jordan Clarkson three that somehow bounced right to Lauri.

In overtime, it looked like Durant hit the dagger with a three over Keyonte George with just over 30 seconds left to put the Suns up five.

Instead, the Jazz rallied to get two trips to the line with a missed Suns three in between, and then Eric Gordon missed the front end of his free throws late to allow Utah to tie the game with a two-pointer, which Collin Sexton did on a putback at the buzzer.

All of that was in vain from the Jazz, but it was an impressive fight from Utah, with the Suns showing some resilience as well to stay the course and, eventually, by the tip of Durant’s finger, come away with the win.