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Hip-hop podcast newbie Bobbi Althoff is back with another sit-down conversation. Since the TikTok influencer’s inaugural The Really Good podcast episode with Drake, Althoff has left fans of the culture torn over her interviewing style. That division was heightened when Lil Yachty made an appearance in July. It has been revealed that “Fan” rapper Offset will be the next rap superstar to join Althoff for an awkward conversation.

So when does Offset & Bobbi Althoff’s interview come out? According to the caption in Althoff’s latest Instagram upload, the episode will be released on her official YouTube page this Thursday, September 28.

In their forthcoming exchange’s teaser clip (inserted above), Offset cut right through Althoff’s typical “I don’t know you” shtick. When Offset began questioning Althoff about her interest in interviewing subjects, she revealed that she simply enjoys getting to know people on a deeper level. That response led him to ask why she wanted to chat with him; Althoff revealed that she didn’t have that same desire to learn about the former Migos member.

“Your team reached out to mine,” she said.

Offset quickly shuts her down. “Don’t cap, let’s not cap about that — flag on the play. Cap,” the entertainer replied.

The two exchange jabs, ultimately ending with Offset setting the record that she’s still relatively new in the industry. “They had to show me who Bobbi was. I thought they were talking about Bobby Boucher,” said Offset, referring to the fictional character played by Adam Sandler in the 1998 comedy film The Waterboy.

Althoff attempts to make a quippy comeback. “I never heard of you. I had to Google you,” Althoff interjected.

“I had to go on TikTok, I couldn’t even Google you,” Offset joked. “You’re not there yet. But you’ll be there. But you’re on TikTok.”

Catch the full episode on 9/28.

Can I interest you in the “most gayest, most funnest, most titillating queer ghost-hunting show ever” narrated by Kristen Stewart? I thought so.

From the creators of Queer Eye, Hulu‘s Living for the Dead (good title) follows five queer ghost hunters, Alex Le May, Juju Bae, Ken Boggle, Logan Taylor and Roz Hernandez, as they explore spooky locations across the country. There better be an episode about a haunted baseball game in the Pacific Northwest.

“It’s so cool and enlivening that me and my best friend CJ Romero had this funny idea and now it’s a show,” Stewart, who also produced Living for the Dead, said in a statement. “It started as a bit of a hypothetical silly pipe dream and now I am so proud to have shepherded something that is as moving and meaningful as it is truly a gay old time.”

Stewart continued:

“Our cast makes me laugh and cry and they had the courage and heart to take us places I wouldn’t go by myself. And it’s a super cool maiden voyage for the company I’ve started with my partners Dylan Meyer and Maggie McLean. This is just the beginning for us and for Living for the Dead. We wanna one day have traipsed across the entire spooky ass country. Maybe the world!”

Living for the Dead premieres on Hulu on October 18th

With its arrival on Hulu, the wildly fun alien suspense thriller No One Will Save You has been bowling over audiences who can’t believe it didn’t get a theatrical release. The film follows Kaitlyn Dever as an anxiety-riddled young woman named Brynn that never wants to leave the house until she gets some terrifying visitors.

While opening up about the sci-fi film’s many inspirations, which include Minority Report and Total Recall, director Brian Duffield didn’t shy away from one of No One Will Save You‘s most surprising comparison: Marvel’s Groot.

The tree-like creature has been a staple of the Guardians of the Galaxy films (as well as appearances in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame) and is most known for communicating only through the use of “I am Groot.” While James Gunn has revealed that everyone of Groot’s lines has an English meaning, Duffield wants to go a different route with his aliens.

Via Polygon:

“What’s cool about Guardians is — they did such a cool thing in Guardians 3. Peter Quill understands what Groot is saying, and the audience doesn’t. Gamora spends the movie being like, What is this tree saying? And then at the end, she understands him, and the audience does, too. I think the fact that Brynn never understands the aliens means it would be a bit of a cheat for the audience to learn more than she does.”

Clearly a Marvel buff, Duffield expanded on the Groot comparison even further.

“Rocket and Quill know what Groot is saying all the time, but Brynn is baffled,” he explained. “She has no idea. But she’s recognizing that they’re saying the same thing to her a couple of different times. You can play with that and try to understand what they were saying all these different times to her? But I don’t think I’ll do a subtitle version.”

No One Will Save You is now streaming on Hulu.

(Via Polygon)

The more we learn about how Gareth Edwards’ The Creator was made (our interview with Edwards is here), the more unorthodox and unusual it sounds. He’s an original sci-fi film about a war between humans and artificial intelligence coming into theaters this coming weekend, shot on a modest budget in the $80 million range, but looks absolutely stunning and gorgeous.

Here’s something else unusual: the film has two cinematographers. One is veteran Greg Fraser, who shot Rogue One with Edwards, as well as projects like the two Dune films and The Batman. Fraser, as he says, had some overlap with Dune, so Oren Soffer was brought in. With this being his first big project, he had to quickly learn the unusual dynamic between Edwards and Fraser. A big part of that dynamic is that Gareth Edwards shoots on location and is his own camera operator. This creates a situation where the cinematographer is telling the director where the lighting is set up on a shot. But Edwards has his own way of doing things and doesn’t always care where the lighting is if something else catches his eye.

Fraser admits working with Edwards would not be every cinematographer’s cup of tea, but he and Soffer personally find it exciting. And ahead, the pair explain what it’s like to shoot a Gareth Edwards movie.

First of all, there are two cinematographers on this movie. That’s unusual.

Greig Fraser: It is. And it’s highly unusual the way that we worked. And I think what’s super interesting about it is that it worked so well. It was a very interesting experiment where basically the entire film is unorthodox. If you look deeply into the production process, it’s a very unorthodox film in the way that we approached it and the way that we shot it and the way that Gareth finished it. So at every stage of the process, it was a level of unorthodox-ness, if that’s even a word. That was quite exciting. So I won’t bore you and break down exactly where Oren and I started and stopped…

Well, I’d like to know some of that.

Greig Fraser: Let’s talk broadly then. Now I’ll talk broadly. So, I’ve been working with Gareth now since Rogue One – fortunate enough to do Rogue One with him. And the whole time we were talking about, “What’s next?” how to make a film next. And we tested cameras and lenses for the years leading up to the shoot for this. As he was writing, we were testing different configurations and talking about how we would make the film and how we would scout it and shoot it. And so we came up with all these different ideas. Now, unfortunately, this film pushed a little bit because of COVID – and there was a bit of an overlap for me and Dune.

So that was the reality of why I couldn’t, sort of, end up… I wouldn’t say finishing the movie, because I definitely did. But what happened was that Oren and I had a great overlap. And it wasn’t dissimilar to the overlap that I had say on The Mandalorian with Baz Idoine. He shot some episodes, I shot some episodes, but there was a very strong hand-in-glove overlap between us as cinematographers. And it was a very much thinking outside-the-box situation where even though I wasn’t able to be in Thailand with the team, I was helping support Oren and the team back in Los Angeles looking at footage, talking about setups, working on the volume loads with ILM. And then Oren and the team were sort of on the shoot there in Thailand. So it was very much an overlap and kind of a crossover. Almost a new role, creating new roles.

So how do you match each other’s styles? These aren’t different episodes, this is one movie.

Oren Soffer: I don’t think we cinematographers really think about what we do as having a “style.” Like a unique style that changes from person to person. We do have a taste, like every cinematographer has taste, and we have things that we like, and we have images that we’re drawn to. And I think the biggest advantage to start this whole process off was that Greig and Gareth already had a very extensive taste alignment process on Rogue One and in the subsequent years. So their tastes are similar. And I think my taste was sort of similar to them as well.

Gareth, he thinks about everything and he’s been thinking about this project for well over four or five years at this point. And so for us, it was really about stepping into Gareth’s world. And Greig and I both finding our role and using the prep time and the planning to figure out how we can support that vision. And how we can make sure that Gareth is going to be able to make the film in the way that he wanted to make it. And, of course, Gareth is operating the camera. So that’s another unorthodox aspect to the whole thing – having your director also be your camera operator.

So are you telling him what to do?

Oren Soffer: It’s impossible to delineate it in that way because, ultimately, Gareth is going to go where he’s going to go. And he’s going to point the camera and he’s going to react to things that are happening in real time. I mean, a lot of it isn’t premeditated. The whole point of the way that we set up the film was in order for Gareth to be able to react spontaneously to things that were unfolding in real-time, on real locations with real people. And so part of our job then becomes creating an environment in which he’s able to do that. And so sometimes I’m adjusting the lighting on the fly while he’s kind of turning the camera to look in a different direction. But Gareth’s a great operator. He has good taste. It was never as simple as just one decision being made and then that being delegated down, which is how it sort of typically works. But that was part of the fun.

Greig Fraser: What’s exciting, Mike, about our job on this movie or in other movies is that we always have to sort of meld ourselves to what the project needs. If it’s a big film where we’ve got three or four operators and the director doesn’t really care about the visuals? We’re the shape-shifters on every project to basically fill all the gaps that the director doesn’t have. And on this one? It was very much like we were shape-shifting to fill the gaps that Gareth needed, as Oren just said. Gareth didn’t need us to tell him where to point the camera. That wasn’t necessarily, that’s not what he needed. What he needed was support. That when he wanted to point the camera, that we had his back. That there was no trucks, no crew. It was all lit properly.

But can that be frustrating?

Greig Fraser: There are so many frustrating things on set. But ultimately, again, part of the job is to just go with the flow. I’ll tell you a little story. On Rogue One Gareth was operating a shot. He was in a spaceship. I was outside. I was lighting at the lighting desk. And I said, “So, Gareth, who are you going to look at first, which direction? Just give me a starting point. Just show me the shot.” And I think he pointed it at Felicity Jones, let’s say. And I was like, great, perfect. I lit it. I was like, great, ready to go.

So standby, roll camera… he turned around. Now, he didn’t turn around to be a douche about it. He turned around because he found something behind him. The actor was doing something. So that’s Gareth in a nutshell. He’s instinctual. He responds to how he feels. He’s very much kind of a… I wouldn’t say a loose cannon, because that’s a negative connotation. He’s like a genie out of a bottle. You let him out of the bottle and he’s finding these great things. So it’s super exciting.

A lot of loose cannons have made some very interesting things. To be fair.

Greig Fraser: I mean, loose cannons, I wouldn’t be using that as a quote, but I’ll tell you what I’d be using is something like he’s highly instinctual. And he very much uses that instinct for the betterment of the film.

Oren Soffer: I had the advantage of stepping into the Greig and Gareth dynamic that already existed. So Greig was able to, for example, tell me that story and other stories from Rogue One. So when I started working on the project, I sort of had an idea of what Gareth is like, and then I spent four months on the road with Gareth location scouting. And so that time was just really valuable for myself and Gareth to start to learn each other’s taste, and especially for me to learn Gareth’s taste. By the time we were shooting, it wasn’t frustrating because you know what you’re going to get. And like Greig said, there’s a million other frustrations on set, but that one was just the thing you had to let go of right away and just embrace it and just jump in the river and have it take you down.

Greig Fraser: If you embrace it the right way, it’s actually fun.

Oren Soffer: It is.

Let me word it this way. It does sound like there are cinematographers out there who wouldn’t love this process, even though you two both found it very exciting and different. Is that an accurate way to put it?

Greig Fraser: I think that’s a very good way to put it. And you’re correct, you’re correct. Because, again, talking about my job starts here and ends there, some people like to work that way. And that’s more power to them. And I don’t think it’s good or bad, I just think that that’s the way it is. But yes, you’re right. You go into a film with Gareth and you need to know what you’re in for. As in you need to know how to best support him. Which I think it’s the more accurate way of describing the situation because, ultimately. we are all in there of support of Gareth. And if Gareth needs you to be 100 miles away and not talking to him, that’s what you need. If he needs you to be there adjusting the light or moving things around, that’s what you need. And I think that, from my perspective, and I think Oren’s the same way, you don’t get experiences like that very often.

You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.

Making a living as a touring musician can be a challenge, especially if you’re not a household name act who gets tens of thousands of fans out to every concert. Live Nation Entertainment, the parent company of Ticketmaster, recognizes this, and now they’re doing something about it.

Today (September 26), the company announced a program called “On The Road Again,” and if that reminds you of Willie Nelson, it should, as they’ve teamed with the country icon to launch the initiative. There are two major factors here that serve to help making touring a more viable commercial enterprise for musicians.

One is that at all of Live Nation’s club-sized venues (of which there are 77, as Consequence notes), artists will no longer have to pay fees to sell merchandise, which has been known to take as much as 30 percent of an artist’s merch sale income. The second is that Live Nation clubs are also “investing in developing artists by providing $1,500 in gas and travel cash per show to all headliners and support acts, on top of nightly performance compensation.”

They company notes, “By helping with these core expenses, we aim to make it easier for artists on the road so they can keep performing to their fans in more cities across the country.”

Nelson also said, “Touring is important to artists so whatever we can do to help other artists, I think we should do it. This program will impact thousands of artists this year and help make touring a little bit easier.”

The program will also provide “financial bonuses to local promoters that help execute at shows, tour reps that live life on a bus, as well as venue crew members that have worked over 500 hours in 2023.”

Learn more about “On The Road Again” here and watch the announcement video above.

Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce may or may not be dating… that’s cool, whatever, I don’t care about that (no shade if you do). What has me a lot more excited is Taylor Swift’s feet! Or more precisely, her footwear game, as Esquire reports that Swift showed up to last Sunday’s Chicago Bears vs the Kansas City Chiefs game showing team spirit, dressed in red and white from head to toe, including a pair of New Balance 550s White Team Red.

The 550 is currently one of New Balance’s most beloved silhouettes after it was reintroduced to the public via Aimé Leon Dore’s 2020 International Friendship Through Basketball collection, which brought the 550 out of New Balance’s archives. The sneaker features a simple leather build and a minimalist design, and was such a big deal in the sneaker world that ALD’s founder and creative director, Teddy Santis, gained a creative director position at New Balance.

But Taylor rocking the sneaker isn’t just a case of a big celebrity wearing a popular sneaker, it’s deeper than that.

Have you ever wondered why Taylor is the cultural force that she is? It’s because everything she does is layered in meaning, this gives her every move a level of depth that most pop stars/cultural icons just don’t share.

Taylor wearing the White Team Read 550s, with its mix of white, red, and black trim (which perfectly echoes the Chef’s logo) wasn’t just her showing support for Kelce’s team, it was also simultaneously a way for her to embody her latest era as she gears up to release the much anticipated album, 1989 Taylor’s Version.

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A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift)

Guess which year the New Balance 550 was first released? I’m hoping you guessed 1989, because that’s the right answer. Only Taylor could make a public appearance that strengthens dating rumors into something of a symbolic gesture that slyly references her latest project.

Looking to buy a pair of New Balance 550s? Hit up the New Balance webstore right now where the White Team Red is still available. Get it while you can.

Your typical big brand nationwide restaurant chain has about two or three margaritas on the menu. Four tops. But not Chili’s. Chili’s is a different beast altogether. Currently the restaurant has over ten permanent margaritas on the menu (and they’re available both in-restaurant and to-go).

That’s a lot of margs. You could even argue that it’s too many (could you though? Could you really?).

If you’re rolling up to Chili’s, you’d better be coming with an insatiable thirst for tequila because even if you’re a hardcore drinker, there is no way you can try the entire margarita menu in one sitting. I mean you could but you’d probably die a horrible death from alcohol poisoning. And trust me my friend… you don’t want to die in a Chili’s.

So we’re here to help you choose the right margarita for you. Over the past few weeks I’ve been on a quest to try every single permanent margarita on the Chili’s menu in an effort to rank them from most inessential to the most delicious. This way you know exactly what you order when you’re rolling through.

Aside from the 11 core margaritas, Chili’s also has a seasonal margarita that they rotate in and out. Currently it’s the September Sunrise (tequila pineapple and grenadine), and before that it was the Sangrita (Sangria with a tequila twist). Both drinks are delicious but because there is a high chance you’ll be coming to this ranking at a random time of the year, I decided not to rank these. I will say this though — in my experience the seasonal margarita is always worth a try!

Let’s drink!

11. Chili’s House Frozen Mar-Go-Rita

Build: Tequila, Triple Sec, Ice, Margarita Mix

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Candy sweet with a salty lime finish. Very little tequila flavor, but the ice slush is smooth and a treat to drink.

If you’re a fan of frozen margaritas, I’m sorry but it’s Chili’s weakest, both in flavor and in alcohol strength. I couldn’t get a straight answer about what type of tequila is used here, at one Chili’s I was told it was El Toro, another told me it was El Jimador but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter.

This is a drink for people who don’t really care about tequila. They just want something sweet to drink that’ll give a buzz. In addition to the classic flavor you can order this mango, strawberry or wild berry. Pick your poison but I can only speak for the classic.

The Bottom Line:

Sweet and people pleasing, unless you’re a tequila snob.

10. Tiki Beach Party Rita

Build: Bacardi Silver Rum, Jimador Silver Tequila, Blue Curacao, Coconut and Pineapple

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Heavy notes of vanilla and orange with a hint of tart lime citrus, and faint echoes of piña colada, without the emphasis on cream. You get the slightest hint of tequila’s bright bite on the backend, but it’s muted by the sweetness.

This wouldn’t be my first choice — or frankly, my second, third, or fourth — but the intense sweetness and tropical vibes of this drink are addicting. But the tequila is definitely an afterthought here, don’t let that ‘Rita’ added to the name fool you.

The Bottom Line:

Good but more of a rum focused tropical drink than something that should be in the margarita family.

9. Chili’s House Mar-Go-Rita

Build: Tequila, Triple Sec, Margarita Mix

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Very candy sweet and sugary with a zesty artificial lime flavor and hint of salt on the backend. It’s your standard restaurant margarita, nothing special, gets the job done. If you’re going to order this I highly suggest you elevate it by choosing one of Chili’s better tequila brands like Casamigos or Patrón.

Like the frozen version this is available in classic, mango, strawberry, or wild berry. Again, I can only speak to the classic, which was nothing special.

The Bottom Line:

Your standard restaurant margarita. Sweet, weak, and nothing special.

8. Grand Coconut Margarita

Build: Lunazul Blanco Tequila, Malibu Coconut Rum and Grand Marnier with Coconut, Margarita Mix

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Rich vanilla, oak and brandy flavors paired with creamy coconut, some lime zest, and a bright vegetal agave finish with some black pepper spice. I like this much better than the Tiki Beach Party Rita.

Apart from the sweet tropical flavors, this drink really packs a punch and feels more deserving of the “margarita” name.

The Bottom Line:

Tropical and sweet, but heavy on the alcohol with a noticeable (but pleasing) bitterness on the backend.

7. Patrón Margarita

Build: Patrón Silver, Citrónage, Margarita Mix

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Bright and vegetal with smooth vanilla notes, soft orange flavors, and a sweet artificial lime flavor. Incredibly easy to drink but I feel like this option is a bit of a trap for tequila novices.

The use of Patrón and Citrónage would have you believe that this is a premium margarita, but all the nuance of that alcohol is drowned out by the sweetness and artificiality of the high fructose corn syrup infused margarita mix.

The Bottom Line:

Don’t let the Patrón and Citrónage fool you, those more premium alcohols are ruined by the sweetness of the margarita mix. If you want an elevated margarita from Chili’s look elsewhere on the menu.

6. Skinny ‘Rita

Build: Teremana Blanco Tequila, Fresh Sour, Splash of Soda

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Mellow cooked agave flavors peak out of a heavy dose of sweet and tart citrus with a pleasing spicy pepper-backed finish. The splash of soda helps to reign in the tartness and keep the drink from coming across as too intensely sweet.

I have to admit I was a bit disappointed by what this drink could’ve been. Generally a “Skinny ‘Rita” is made with actual lime juice instead of margarita mix, putting it more in line with a real margarita. This one isn’t, it’s made using fresh sour instead, which has lime juice in it, but is a lot sweeter than the real thing.

Still, it’s a significant step up from the margarita mix-based margs on the menu.

The Bottom Line:

Similar to Chili’s House Margarita, with more of an emphasis on the tequila. Still incredibly sweet though.

5. Presidente Margarita

Build: Lunazul Reposado Tequila, Citrónage Extra Fine Orange Liqueur and E&J Brandy, Margarita Mix

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Hints of vanilla and roasted agave hover over a sweet orange base with some woody oak notes, some floral qualities, zesty citrus, and a sweet artificial lime finish.

There is a lot going on with the Presidente Margarita, which is probably why it’s one of Chili’s bestsellers. Of all of Chili’s margarita mix-based cocktails, this one is by far the best thanks to the combination of tequila and brandy. It’s sweet, but not totally drowned out by it to the point of tasting like candy.

The Bottom Line:

It has a strong alcohol flavor that is nicely balanced with some artificial sweetness.

4. El Niño Margarita

Build: Espolon Reposado Tequila, Gran Gala & Citrónage

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Sweet vanilla, tropical pineapple, and roasted agave with layers of sweet orange, citrus tart, and a gentle kiss of amaretto on the backend.

I like this one a lot but it’s going to be divisive and entirely depends on how much you like orange flavors in your margarita. It doesn’t have that same tart bite as a lime-based margarita, but it’s sweet and inviting without tasting like straight up candy.

The Bottom Line:

A bright sweet orange dominated margarita with an almond finish and a lot of bright agave representation.

3. Patrón Blackberry Margarita

Build: Patrón Reposado Tequila, Cointreau, Shaken with Blackberry

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Sweet honey, vanilla, and roasted agave with a hint of oakiness, strong citrus flavors, and a juicy tart finish.

This drink is both delicious and incredibly appetizing to look at. The blackberry representation is very faint, despite its beautiful color, but it’s present enough for you to taste it. I don’t have any complaints about this drink, the only thing that could make it better is some actual lime juice, so squeeze the wedge garnish into your drink and give it a gentle stir.

The Bottom Line:

One of Chili’s best margaritas. Fruity, with a vanilla and honey forward tequila and some high quality orange liqueur. This will be someone’s favorite, it’s just not mine.

2. Henny ‘Rita

Build: Premium Hennesy VS Cognac, Teremana Blanco Tequila, Fresh Sour

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Spicy cinnamon with a mix of rich vanilla and chocolate and some delicate floral notes followed by tart lime, green grass and a bright pepper-forward finish.

This drink begins with the Hennessy notes dominating before the tequila takes over for its bright finish. The drink is garnished with a lime and orange wedge, both of which I suggest you squeeze into the drink for a bit more natural sweetness.

I was incredibly close to giving this one the top spot, but I think I like my number one choice just a bit more.

The Bottom Line:

Strong yet mellow and rich with the right amount of sweetness to balance it out. One of Chili’s finest.

1. Casamigos Margarita

Build: Casamigos Reposado Tequila, Cointreau, Fresh Sour

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Roasted agave, cocoa, pineapple and mango with sweet citrus and bright lime with a gently spicy finish.

Straight up, the Casamigos Margarita isn’t the most exciting drink on Chili’s menu, it’s not a fun spin on a classic margarita, it’s just… a classic margarita. But nothing really beats that, does it? A great-yet-classic margarita is the best kind of margarita.

My ideal margarita is simple: good tequila (which Casamigos is), a solid orange liqueur (which Cointreau is), and the juice of one lime (which “fresh sour” is not quite but is kinda close). If I’m making drinks for friends who expect something a bit sweeter, I might add a bit of agave syrup for some added sweetness.

The Casamigos Margarita is the closest thing Chili’s makes to a real traditional margarita and since its using fresh sour in place of real lime juice, it strikes a nice balance between the flavors of alcohol and people-pleasing tart sweetness.

You can’t go wrong with this drink.

The Bottom Line:

Is it exciting? No, but it’s a drink that puts premium ingredients at the forefront, actually tastes like tequila, and isn’t sickly sweet like most restaurant margaritas are. There is enough here to please both seasoned tequila drinkers and a more casual fan of margaritas alike.

This is where your round of drinks at Chili’s should begin. Start with the Casamigos Margarita, hit the Henny ‘Rita immediately after, and BOOM — you’ve got yourself a good night ahead of you.

Matt Diaz has worked extremely hard to lose 270 pounds over the past six years.

But his proudest moment came in March 2015 when he decided to film himself with his shirt off to prove an important point about body positivity and self-love.

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Matt had lap-band surgery in 2009 at age 16.

Through the course of his weight-loss journey, Matt became passionate about promoting body positivity for people of all shapes and sizes.

To stay motivated, he started sharing his journey on social media, posting before-and-after photos, answering questions and giving support to followers, and even sharing his meals and favorite workouts. Six years later, Matt is down over 270 pounds and is a very active voice in the online body-positivity movement.

But in all his years of sharing his story, the one thing he’s never done is showed what his body looks like after 200+ pounds of weight loss. So he uploaded the video above to show his followers his true self.

Shortly after he posted the video online, originally to Tumblr, it quickly went viral and garnered thousands of shares and comments from people around the web. I was one of the thousands touched by the video, so I reached out to Matt to find out more about what motivated him and what he hopes others can take away from his story. Here’s what he had to say:

Why was it so important for you to post this video?

“I’m a really big advocate for self-love and body positivity. I think it’s important that we learn to love the bodies we’re in, even if we don’t necessarily like every little thing about them. However, in the time I’d been writing and talking about it, I’d never actually shown my excess skin to anyone. It felt dishonest somehow, to others and to myself. I couldn’t tell others that I wanted them to love themselves and keep myself hidden away and ashamed of my skin.”

“I know what it feels like to hate your body, and to be depressed about it, and I never want anyone to feel that way again. So, if making myself vulnerable can help one person, why not?”
— Matt Diaz

What’s the response been like? Anything particularly unexpected?

“I think that putting any opinion on the Internet will garner a certain amount of negativity and cynicism, but I haven’t seen anything like that at all. I’ve read every comment and message since the video has gone up, literally thousands, and they’re all so thoughtful.

A really surprising side-effect were the number of transgender people who’ve thanked me saying that they understood my struggle, even though their body-related insecurity grew from different roots. I’d never even begun to [think] of what that must be like, and the fact that my message could help even though my problems began somewhere else is really incredible.”

What advice or words of encouragement do you have for someone who’s struggling to love their body?

“I know it’s difficult, especially when you’re starting out. I want you to remember that you are not the problem, certain aspects of society are the problem. You’ll constantly be told that you’re too heavy or too tall to be attractive, or you’re not masculine or feminine enough, or that your skin isn’t the right tone or your hair isn’t the right color, and these people are always always always wrong.

Luckily, we’re slowly starting to see these ideas get phased out by modernity. Plus-sized, un-retouched models are getting more attention in major brands, more attention is being put on the alternative scene for high fashion, it’s becoming clear that these negative ideas are not going to last, though it’s going to take a while.”

“Understand that to love yourself is to contest the negative things that were put into your head. Every smile, tattoo, bathing suit, and crop top is a small revolution. Tell yourself you’re beautiful every day, and I promise you will be.“
— Matt Diaz

Watch video below:

Matt’s story is a personal one, but it’s one we can all learn from.

I think the most important thing to take away here is that self-love takes time and is different for everyone no matter what they look like. It’s also worth noting that for Matt, losing weight was an important part of his journey, but that might not be the case for everyone. Even so, our society has such incredibly high and unrealistic body standards that even many of those who do work to lose weight end up feeling uncomfortable or being shamed for not having “perfect bodies” once they’ve lost weight.

There’s no such thing as a “perfect body” because everyone is different, which is what makes us beautiful and great! I’m glad there are people like Matt in the world who are not only willing to share their stories but also to inspire others by showing that body confidence comes in all shapes and sizes, and that everyone deserves to feel good about who they are. Here’s hoping Matt’s inspiring words can help others begin to love and accept themselves, no matter where they’re at in their journey.

This story originally appeared on 03.18.15.

Every parent has made that split decision to grab a quick lunch or dinner by pulling into the nearest drive-thru. You’re going through your mental check list of all the tasks you have left to complete when you realize it’s been a few hours since you’ve fed your tiny human. So instead of switching stations in your brain to mentally flip through what’s in your cabinets, you pull into a fast food place and call it dinner.

Most people aren’t expecting a life changing experience while in the drive-thru but for one mom, it was. Liliana Leahy pulled into the Chick-fil-A drive-thru to grab lunch when her daughter started to choke. Leahy explained that she panicked when her daughter struggled to breathe and was unable to communicate what was wrong. The mom began began screaming.

“So I started like screaming, like hey help me. Somebody help me. My daughter is choking. Just panic,” Leahy tells 11Alive.

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Thankfully, the scared mom’s screams were answered by a Chik-fil-A employee who jumped into action. Mia Isabella Velez saw the little girl was choking and got the 3-year-old out of the car to do the Heimlich maneuver. It took about three tries before the large coin came flying out of the girl’s mouth. Velez is only 18 and just recently moved to Georgia from California, but that day she just happened to be at the right place in the right time.

After the incident took place, the little girl just wanted an ice cream. It was well deserved. What a scary situation for everyone involved.

Watch the video below:

The little soft machine that is recording artist Arlo Parks has set their cooordinates to chart a course to the United States. Today (September 26) in conjunction with the release of her Ameya-directed video for “Purple Phase,” she announced that her My Soft Machine Tour would makes stops across North America.

The tour initially began on September 13 in Amsterdam. However, the North American wing won’t begin until February 29 when Parks, alongside special guest Chloe George, set roots in San Diego, California. Last September, due to mental health reasons, Parks decided to cancel several performances in the US. Now, it seems like the musician is in a better place and ready to make up for lost times.

Parks’ My Soft Machine album has received high praise from fans. The record “Purple Phase” appears on the project. Watch the official video for the single above.

Arlo Parks’ fan pre-sale began today (September 26). General ticket sales will start on Friday at 10 am local time. Find more information here. View the full My Soft Machine Tour schedule below.

10/01/2023 — Washington, DC @ All Things Go Festival
02/29/2024 — San Diego, CA @ The Observatory North Park
03/02/2024 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern
03/05/2024 — Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
03/07/2024 — Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
03/08/2024 — Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
03/09/2024 — Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
03/12/2024 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex
03/13/2024 — Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
03/15/2024 — Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
03/16/2024 — Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
03/19/2024 — Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works
03/20/2024 — Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade (Heaven)
03/22/2024 — Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
03/25/2024 — Toronto, ON @ The Danforth Music Hall
03/26/2024 — Montreal, QC @ Théâtre Beanfield
03/28/2024 — Boston, MA @ Royale
03/29/2024 — Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
04/02/2024 — Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel