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The Grammys will again pay tribute to hip-hop’s 50th anniversary with A Grammy Salute To 50 Years Of Hip-Hop. The two-hour special will expand on the 50-year tribute from this year’s Grammy ceremony, which included performers like Grandmaster Flash, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah, Method Man, Missy Elliott, Lil Baby, GloRilla, and more. The new special will expand the lineup to include Big Daddy Kane, Gunna, MC Lyte, Too $hort, T.I., Warren G, and YG.

While the special will tape on November 8 in Inglewood, you will be able to catch it on CBS when it airs on Sunday, December 10.

According to Billboard, the special’s executive producers are Questlove and LL Cool J. After complaints that the original performance was too short and overlooked important figures in hip-hop history, Questlove explained, “I asked like 10 legends so….sometimes you gotta go with the one who wants you. again might not be your preference but most of hip hop has side gigs. Acting was the main issue. lotta movies being shot.”

Afterward, the Recording Academy CEO, Harvey Mason Jr., hinted at some more celebrations later in the year. “For five decades, Hip Hop has not only been a defining force in music, but a major influence on our culture,” he said. “Its contributions to art, fashion, sport, politics, and society cannot be overstated. I’m so proud that we are honoring it in such a spectacular way on the Grammy stage. It is just the beginning of our year-long celebration of this essential genre of music.”

The worlds of sports and entertainment have intersected in a big way over the last few weeks. Taylor Swift, the singer-songwriter who is among the most famous people on the planet, is currently dating Travis Kelce, the Super Bowl winning tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs who, even before this, has become more and more of a household name thanks to things like hosting Saturday Night Live.

Swift has been a fixture at Chiefs games this season, while Kelce has popped up alongside her in tabloids. Seemingly everyone has an opinion on their relationship, but thanks to Morgan Freeman‘s appearance on CBS Mornings earlier this week to promote the Netflix docuseries Life on Our Planet, we learned that he, decidedly, does not.

“You’re a big Kansas City Chiefs fan, is that true?” Freeman was asked before confirming that he is, indeed, a Kansas City Chiefs fan. “So, how are you feeling about Taylor and Travis? Is it keeping you up at night? Are you in favor? What are you thinking, Morgan Freeman, about this?”

Everyone on set laughed at the myriad of questions Freeman faced, but Freeman was stoic and gave a very blunt answer.

“I don’t think about them at all,” he said before he started to laugh. When it was suggested that the most important thing to him in his Chiefs fandom is touchdowns and wins, Freeman said that is, indeed, the case.

“Yeah, are you winning?” Freeman said. “It’s great to watch [Patrick Mahomes] run, escape, and he’s got a rifle for an arm. So, that’s what I’m interested in.”

Fortunately for Freeman, the Chiefs have done plenty of winning this year, as they are 6-1 and sit atop the AFC West.

Flame Broiler has a reputation for being boring. It’s not any of the food’s fault — it’s simply because it’s one of the few fast food chains that offers healthy(ish) food, and the word “healthy” in fast food almost always equals bland and flavorless (looking at you Subway).

But that’s not a fair characterization of Flame Broiler. I mean, have you ever doused your food in Magic Sauce? It’s a near-religious experience (and likely sure of sugar — which is why I keep adding “ish” to the word healthy). Does it hit like a spicy chicken sandwich, slip you into a deep food coma like a bacon cheeseburger, or get the dopamine surging like cheese fries?

Not a f*cking chance. But it competes with Chipotle and sometimes you need a respite from all that sodium.

Luckily for all of us, Flame Broiler is now putting that “healthy = boring” narrative to rest once and for all with the release of the brand’s Korean Spicy Chicken — joining Flame Broiler menus nationwide as a permanent item.

The Korean Spicy Chicken is a spicy twist on the typical Flame Broiler offerings, using gochujang and sesame oil to bring big taste-bud igniting flavors to the healthy(ish — check the cal counts here) fast food space. Check my full review below.

Korean Spicy Chicken

Thoughts & Tasting Notes

Unlike most “Korean-inspired” flavors in the fast food space, Flame Broiler’s Korean Spicy Chicken doesn’t play. As soon as it hits your palate you’re tastebuds are flooded some seriously spicy sensations. An intense heat greets you that quickly dissipates into a savory and sweet characteristic that leaves a gentle spice level lingering on the palate. That spice pulls you deeper into the dish — after my first taste, I found myself diving back into the bowl faster and faster until my meal was through.

We’re dealing with dark meat chicken thigh here so it’s full of fatty flavor without any of the dryness typical of chicken breast. The chicken is saucy enough that you don’t need to add any of Flame Broiler’s teriyaki-style Magic Sauce, but I did anyway and I like the way it pairs. With the inclusion of Magic Sauce the sweet notes are more prominent and you pull forth sumptuous umami notes, making the dish even more satisfying.

Overall, this isn’t just a great addition to Flame Broiler’s menu — I literally can’t see myself ever ordering the regular charbroiled chicken again. This is the new standard.

The Bottom Line:

Simply some of the best tasting (and spiciest) chicken currently in the fast food space. Healthy(ish) food doesn’t have to be boring — this new entry from Flame Broiler proves it.

Find your nearest Flame Broiler here.

Warning: Spoilers for The Fall of the House of Usher ahead.

Anytime Mike Flanagan calls up his pal Carla Gugino to be in something, you know it’s going to be pretty messed up, which is exactly what happened with his new show, The Fall of the House of Usher.

Flanagan’s latest Netflix show follows the extravagant Usher family and the various family members (and enemies) that revolve in the inner circle. Think Succession with a lot more death and destruction. The story is loosely inspired by the works of Edgar Allen Poe, with modern-day influences splattered throughout. So who is Verna, the mysterious figure who seems to appear just in time for some chaos?

The name “Verna” works as an anagram for raven, a central figure in Poe’s universe, and also a likeness to death itself. Verna is present and lurking throughout all eight episodes before it is revealed in the finale that the two main siblings, Roderick and Madeline Usher, made a deal with her on New Year’s Eve so many years ago that they would have wealth, power, and freedom, but when it was Roderick’s time to go, the rest of his bloodline would succumb with him. Hence, the fall of the house, and all of those outlandish deaths.

Even though Verna was really there, it was the family that made the deal and followed through with their deeds, Verna was just the messenger who made sure that they experienced some karma for starting the controversial pharmaceutical company. Remember when family businesses were just, like, small mom-and-pop candy stores? We should bring those back.

The Fall of the House of Usher is now streaming on Netflix.

As part of an experiment, a man asks for help translating a Facebook message he has received.

There’s a man in Lithuania who speaks only English. The message is in Lithuanian. He can’t read it, so he asks some locals to translate it for him.

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As he asks one person after another to translate the message for him, two things become obvious.

1. He’s received a message full of hate speech.

2. Translating it for him is breaking people’s hearts.

It’s nearly more than these people can bear.

There’s a sudden, powerful connection between the translators and the man they’re translating for. They want to protect him, telling him not to bother with the message.

They apologize for the message.

They look like they want to cry.

Words hurt.

Most of us would never think of saying such horrible things. This video shows people realizing in their gut what it must feel like when those words are pointed at them — it’s all right on their faces. And so is their compassion.

The Facebook message is horrible, but their empathy is beautiful. The video’s emotional power is what makes it unique, and so worth watching and passing around.

Here it is.

The video’s in English, subtitled in Lithuanian. Just watch the faces.

This article originally appeared on 04.10.15

(full text transcribed under the post).

A Facebook user recently commented that the Eagles had “played like they were wearing tutus!!!”

Our response:

“With all due respect to the Eagles, let’s take a minute to look at what our tutu wearing women have done this month:

By tomorrow afternoon, the ballerinas that wear tutus at Pennsylvania Ballet will have performed The Nutcracker 27 times in 21 days. Some of those women have performed the Snow scene and the Waltz of the Flowers without an understudy or second cast. No ‘second string’ to come in and spell them when they needed a break. When they have been sick they have come to the theater, put on make up and costume, smiled and performed. When they have felt an injury in the middle of a show there have been no injury timeouts. They have kept smiling, finished their job, bowed, left the stage, and then dealt with what hurts. Some of these tutu wearers have been tossed into a new position with only a moments notice. That’s like a cornerback being told at halftime that they’re going to play wide receiver for the second half, but they need to make sure that no one can tell they’ve never played wide receiver before. They have done all of this with such artistry and grace that audience after audience has clapped and cheered (no Boo Birds at the Academy) and the Philadelphia Inquirer has said this production looks “better than ever”.

So no, the Eagles have not played like they were wearing tutus. If they had, Chip Kelly would still be a head coach and we’d all be looking forward to the playoffs.”

Happy New Year!

In case it wasn’t obvious, toughness has nothing to do with your gender.

Gendered and homophobic insults in sports have been around basically forever — how many boys are called a “pansy” on the football field or told they “throw like a girl” in Little League?

“They played like they were wearing tutus” is the same deal. It’s shorthand for “You’re kinda ladylike, which means you’re not tough enough.”

Toughness, however, has a funny way of not being pinned to one particular gender. It’s not just ballerinas, either. NFL cheerleaders? They get paid next to nothing to dance in bikini tops and short-shorts in all kinds of weather — and wear only ever-so-slightly heavier outfits when the thermometer drops below freezing. And don’t even get me started on how mind-bogglingly badass the Rockettes are.

Toughness also has nothing to do with what kind of clothes you wear.

As my colleague Parker Molloy astutely points out, the kinds of clothes assigned to people of different genders are, and have always been, basically completely arbitrary. Pink has been both a “boys color” and a “girls color” at different points throughout history. President Franklin D. Roosevelt — longtime survivor of polio, Depression vanquisher, wartime leader, and no one’s idea of a wimp — was photographed in his childhood sporting a long blonde hairstyle and wearing a dress.

Many of us are conditioned to see a frilly pink dance costume and think “delicate,” and to look at a football helmet and pads and think “big and strong.” But scratch the surface a little bit, and you’ll meet tutu-wearing ballerinas who that are among toughest people on the planet and cleat-and-helmet-wearing football players who are … well. The 2015 Eagles.

You just can’t tell from their outerwear.

Ballerinas wear tutus for the same reason football players wear uniforms and pads:

To get the job done.

This article originally appeared on 01.05.16

Earlier this month, a viral video posted by creator Monique Santos (@moniquelsantos09) featured a woman refusing to get out of the car when a date took her to The Cheesecake Factory.

As the video started, the gentleman exited the car and went to the passenger side to open the door. “He got me at The Cheesecake Factory y’all. I ain’t getting out of this car,” the woman said in a video that’s received over 8.1 million views. The video brought up a big discussion on social media about where you should take a woman on a first date.

Around the same time, a list of the 28 places women refuse to go on dates started circulating on social media. It’s believed that it was first created on October 15 by a man who goes by John Shaft on Facebook. According to the post, he asked the women in his life to list the places they refused to go on a first date. The list obviously wasn’t scientific but it’s pretty clear that the woman he spoke to have a real problem with going to chain restaurants on dates.

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Cheesecake Factory topped the list.

What’s so wrong with having a nice night out with fried macaroni and cheese, a plate of Chicken Romano, signature cocktails, and a big hunk of red velvet cheesecake? According to this list, a whole lot.

Here’s the complete list:

Cheesecake Factory

Applebee’s

Chili’s

Chipotle

Olive Garden

The Movies

Your House

Any Fast Food Chain

Buffalo Wild Wings

Wingstop

Red Lobster

A Buffet

IHOP

Denny’s

The gym

Church

Starbucks

Coffee dates

Ice cream dates

Family functions

Movie night (Netflix, Hulu, and etc.)

Somewhere that requires a long drive

Bowling

Nightclubs

Hookah Bar

A bar for just drinks

Waffle House

Sports events

A big problem with this list is that people who live in rural areas may only have a few chain restaurants and don’t have an extensive selection of places to go for a good time. So, you’ll probably be stuck going to one of the places on the list.

Many men responded to the list on Twitter with a big question: Where in the world is left to go on a date that isn’t on the list?

Where tf we supposed to go then??? The moon?😭😭 pic.twitter.com/wvacOhABMq

— Mate (@ThatOneMate55) October 24, 2023

Soooo, 🤔 where the F….. do they wanna go, police station, hospital, credit bureau office, bank, Red Cross, or Heaven?

— J.R (@Jarami1980) October 24, 2023

Some people think that if someone thinks they’re “too good” for The Cheesecake Factory, then maybe they aren’t someone they want to date in the first place. There’s something to be said about avoiding relationships with people who are too picky.

Fr tho, if she’s too good for this I don’t want her pic.twitter.com/opivvDoFHq

— Stash (@AlxFranco_1) October 25, 2023

Others thought creating such stringent rules for someone on a date wasn’t realistic. Especially if it’s a first date and you don’t know the person. Many people aren’t able to spend a lot of time and money going out with someone they don’t even know they will like.

“Refuse to go”
Lets be real, No woman is refusing to go any of these places. They’re going then complaining about it.

— Hot Hand Sports (@hothandsports1) October 25, 2023

Imagine you don’t know the person from a

hole in the wall and the come to you and

demand $200 meals just to talk to them.

Ppl think this is dinner with Buffett pic.twitter.com/DPvCpQwtnu

— man on a rock (@Man_on_a_rock) October 24, 2023

We pullin up to Chuck E Cheese and Dave & Busters since they want to play games.

— Khalid (@ImKowabunga) October 24, 2023

Screw that, we getting those free bread sticks pic.twitter.com/CRTvdDHUVW

— Alex (@Alektsander) October 24, 2023

Many men also made a great point: It doesn’t matter where you go but who you’re with. Many love stories started with a walk and an ice cream cone. Many relationships that began at Michelin-rated restaurants didn’t even make it to a second date.

The first date, with my now wife of 11 yrs, consisted of going out for ice cream, going back to my house and then going to East Side Mario’s.
This is a list created by girls who just want a free fancy meal, not to get to know a guy.

— KICK-Turtizzle (@TurtizzleLive) October 25, 2023

List is bogus. My wife and I went to @Applebees on our first date back in 1992. Will celebrate 30 years of marriage next year. It’s not where you go, it’s who you’re with…

— Darrell Dapprich (@dapp6410) October 25, 2023

If you really like each other then what does it matter?

— The Rook (@TheRook2022) October 24, 2023

That’s a lie 😂 first date with my lifelong girlfriend was going to Owens Beach, eating McDonald’s, and laughing at ridiculous looking people roller blading. Sometimes, it’s the simple things that keep us happy and in good spirits. If a woman can’t vibe with that, find a new one.

— Adam Fenix (@BergmanZachary) October 24, 2023

Took my girl to the grocery store to look at the lobster tank. We’ve been together five years next January.

— Idun (@vgw_idun) October 24, 2023

One of the most classically “Upworthy” stories of the past decade is the story of Jamal Hinton and Wanda Dench. In a twist of fate, Wanda texted her grandson about Thanksgiving plans in 2015, or so she thought. The number she texted belonged to a young man named Jamal, who said she wasn’t his grandma but could he have a plate anyway? It was a joke, but she invited him to join her family’s dinner—and he came.

Jamal and Wanda became fast friends, and they have gotten together for Thanksgiving nearly every year since. They’ve seen a lot of life changes together—Jamal finding love, Wanda losing her husband, a global pandemic. And Jamal is still getting random texts from random numbers on occasion, which is just a reminder of the story that has delighted millions over the past eight years.

Jamal and Wanda made this week’s list along with some other delights, both old and new. May these tidbits of joy lift your spirit and bring a smile—or 10—to your face.

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1. Three cheers for the greatest college trick-or-treaters ever

See on Instagram

Swipe to see the whole thing. Reason #739 to not put an age limit on trick-or-treating.

2. Woman who worked as a housekeeper for 30 years to help fund her son’s pilot education gets the best surprise

There’s nothing like a mother’s love. Nothing.

3. 4-year-old Emi is out here making eternal optimists out of all of us

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Katy Robin Garton (@katyrobinbird)

“Everything that changes has a sweet to it.” Wise words, little one.

4. It’s year 8 of the greatest Thanksgiving story ever told and we are here for it

See on Instagram

It never gets old. (Scroll through for the whole story.)

5. Baby girl repeatedly pranks her parents by pretending to have her arm stuck in a bottle

The acting chops, though. So adorable. Read the full story here.

6. The way this mama cat introduces her baby to her doggo friend

Mommy cat showing her baby to her dog friend.. ud83dude0a

— (@)

It looks like she’s teaching him how to be gentle with her baby. So sweet.

7. Backpacks of school supplies in lieu of flowers? We don’t deserve teachers.

See on Instagram

“A teacher to the end” indeed.

8. Ever seen two cellists rock an AC/DC song? It’s amazing how well it works.

This isn’t new, but it’s new to some people and definitely worth revisiting for those of us who have seen it. Read more about 2Cellos here.

9. Hummingbird gets stuck inside, but lets a gentle human help

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Gardening | Housewife | Farm (@_gardening_for_beginner_)

Here’s to helping the gorgeous little birdy find its freedom.

10. Ginormous dog sounds like Chewbacca while getting a bath

See on Instagram

First of all, how is that dog real? Secondly, what on Earth is he going on about? Does he like the bath or hate it? Or maybe he’s just trying to make conversation with the hairdresser like the rest of us.

Hope this roundup brought a few smiles to your face! If you enjoyed this post and want to see more like it in your inbox, subscribe to our free email newsletter, The Upworthiest, here.

Tracy Morgan is the ultimate talk show guest. You never know what he’s going to say or what’s he going to do. He as unpredictable as his infamous airport singing. Such was the case on Thursday night when he visited The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and proceeded to go on a tangent about how he was almost the next Speaker of the House.

“I could’ve been speaker,” Morgan told Fallon. “My game is good. How do you think I got my wife to marry me? Lying.”

While Fallon completely lost it at that last line, Tracy continued to tout his skills as the only man who can bring both parties together.

Via Decider:

“I’m telling you, who could get the Democrats and the Republicans together better than old Tray-Bae?”

Fallon supported Morgan’s venture, telling him, “That’s what I’m talking about! We get Tracy Morgan in and they get everyone together!”

Morgan then revealed that he knows the House Speaker gig could’ve been his because he already has a powerful supporter in Congress. A man who thinks that Tracy would’ve been “perfect” for the job: George Santos.

“And I believe him, ’cause he invented breakdancing,” Tracy declared. “I remember, out there, doing the back spins and all that, George Santos!”

Morgan also has an in with Donald Trump.

“One time [Trump] came over to the house, and he had six boxes, and it said ‘Top Secret’ on there,” Morgan told Fallon. “I said ‘What’s in these boxes?’ He said, ‘Don’t worry about it.’”

(Via Decider)

Back in February, the Grammys celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip-hop with a tribute performance during the awards ceremony featuring over twenty acts playing hits from across five decades of hip-hop history (give or take).

But one of the complaints about the tribute was that it was too short and ignored some rather pivotal moments and acts from hip-hop (especially the late-aughts and 2010s). At the time, the Grammys promised that a longer special would be recorded and aired later in the year. Earlier this month, the Grammys announced when the show would take place, and today, we learned more about which artists would be performing at the Grammy Salute To 50 Years Of Hip-Hop.

According to Billboard, the second round of acts added to the lineup includes Arrested Development, Big Daddy Kane, Black Sheep, Cypress Hill, Digable Planets, DJ Quik, E-40, GloRilla, Gunna, Jeezy, Juvenile, Latto, Luniz, MC Lyte, Roxanne Shanté, Spinderella, Three 6 Mafia, Too $hort, T.I., 2 Chainz, Warren G, and YG.

They’ll be added to the existing lineup of Black Thought, Bun B, Common, De La Soul, Jermaine Dupri, J.J. Fad, Lady of Rage, LL Cool J, C Sha-Rock, Monie Love, The Pharcyde, Queen Latifah, Questlove, Rakim, Remy Ma, Uncle Luke and Yo-Yo, many of whom played at the tribute earlier this year.

A Grammy Salute To 50 Years Of Hip-Hop tapes on November 8 at the YouTube Theater in Inglewood, CA, and airs on Sunday, December 10 on CBS.