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We are just days away from Olivia Rodrigo‘s sophomore album, Guts. Ahead of the album, the “Bad Idea, Right?” hitmaker sat down for a conversation with indie darling Phoebe Bridgers for Interview Magazine.

During their conversation, the two ladies played a game of “f*ck, marry, kill,” in which, the subjects were writing, touring, and recording.

“Marry writing, f*ck recording, and kill touring, unfortunately,” said Rodrigo.

Bridgers also opted to kill touring, however, switched around what she would do with writing and recording.

“I want to marry recording because it’s the only time I ever feel like I have a consistent job,” said Bridgers. “And writing for me is a very f*ckable relationship because I hate it and love it.”

Elsewhere in the conversation, Rodrigo reiterated that while she does enjoy seeing fans while on tour, she’s still learning how to find a balance between her home life and her tour life.

“I feel so lucky that I get to tour,” said Rodrigo. “I’m in such disbelief that people want to come and see me play my little songs. But it’s really difficult to go for long periods of time. I’m still figuring out how to do it all and what that looks like for me.”

Guts is out 9/8 via Geffen. Find more information here.

Two days after losing to Lithuania in the final game of the second group stage, USA Basketball bounced back in a big way in the quarterfinals of the 2023 FIBA World Cup, as they blasted Italy, 100-63, to advance to the semifinals.

After a rough game against Lithuania, the bench unit returned to its excellent form, as Austin Reaves had two of the early highlights with a stepback three and a big putback dunk as Team USA darted out to a big early advantage.

Joining Reaves in having a big game off the bench was Tyrese Haliburton, who knocked down six of his eight attempts from three on his way to 18 points, as well as dishing out five assists to lead the team.

However, the star of the game was Mikal Bridges, as he exploded for 24 points and seven rebounds in 18 minutes of play, scoring 14 in the first half and adding 10 in the third quarter before heading to the bench.

The Americans length and athleticism was just overwhelming for Italy, which simply couldn’t do much on either end of the floor, and seemingly every time Team USA got a big defensive play, they turned it into quick offense on the other end — with Paolo Banchero delivering two big highlights to twist the knife against an Italian squad he turned down.

It was the dominant performance expected of USA Basketball, and they clearly enjoyed going up against a team without a dominant paint presence. Their ability to beat smaller teams hasn’t been in question this tournament, but it’s still good to see them take care of business and look much more engaged from the jump, not allowing even a sliver of hope for Italy to pull off the upset. Now the Americans will await the winner of Germany-Latvia in the semifinals, with Serbia blasting Lithuania in the other quarterfinal on Tuesday and they will play the winner of Slovenia-Canada.

With just a few weeks to go until the premiere of Loki Season 2, a new teaser shows the God of Mischief on his quest to survive a rapidly unraveling multiverse that has the Trickster God slipping in and out of the past, present, and future.

In the Season 1 finale, Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) made a calamitous decision that shattered reality and dumped Loki into a timeline where his Time Variance Authority partner Mobius doesn’t even recognize him. Season 2 will follow Loki as he attempts to fix his time-slipping problem and reunite with his old allies.

Unfortunately, as Sylvia so eloquently puts it in the new teaser, “Everything is turning to sh*t.”

That statement is punctuated by the increased presence of Jonathan Majors, who will play at least one Kang variant in the new season. As for his plans? That’s anyone’s guess.

Here’s the official synopsis:

Loki Season 2 picks up in the aftermath of the shocking season finale when Loki finds himself in a battle for the soul of the Time Variance Authority. Along with Mobius, Hunter B-15 and a team of new and returning characters, Loki navigates an ever-expanding and increasingly dangerous multiverse in search of Sylvie, Judge Renslayer, Miss Minutes and the truth of what it means to possess free will and glorious purpose.

Loki Season 2 premieres October 6 on Disney+.

Raleigh, North Carolina’s annual three-day Hopscotch Music Festival returns this week with acts like King Krule, Pavement, Margo Price, Denzel Curry, Dinosaur Jr., and Japanese Breakfast playing on the main outdoor stages and shows Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at seven other venues around the downtown area. You can find the set times for the main stages below.

The lineup runs the gamut from folk and rock to EDM and hip-hop (and everything in between), kicking off Thursday at 3:30 pm. The two main stages are located at City Plaza and Moore Square, one of Raleigh’s two surviving original parks. Meanwhile, shows at Kings, Lincoln Theater, Nash Hall, Neptunes, The Pour House (best bar name ever), Slims, Transfer Co., and Wicked Witch begin at either 9 or 9:30 pm each night so festival-goers can keep the party going after enjoying the main stage acts.

Thursday, September 7

Moore Square

5:00pm — Sam Evian
6:30pm — Mild High Club
8:30pm — King Krule

City Plaza

4:20pm — Truth Club
5:45pm — Palm
7:30pm — Alvvays
9:20pm — Pavement

Friday, September 8

Moore Square

3:45pm — Sunny War
5:00pm — Neon Union
6:30pm — Cut Worms
8:30pm — Margo Price

City Plaza

4:30pm — Pat Junior
5:45pm — TiaCorine
7:15pm — Digable Planets
9:15pm — Denzel Curry

Saturday, September 9

Moore Square

2:15pm — Max Gowan
3:15pm — Quasi
4:45pm — American Football
6:30pm — Sunny Day Real Estate
8:30pm — Dinosaur Jr.

City Plaza

1:45pm — Chessa Rich
3:00pm — Florry
4:15pm — Anjimile
4:45pm — ESG
7:30pm — Soccer Mommy
9:30pm — Japanese Breakfast

You can see the full schedule below.

As the saying goes, old habits die hard. For Shannon Sharpe, that meant mixing up his old debate show co-host with his new one. The legendary tight end-turned-television personality made his debut on ESPN’s First Take on Monday and mixed up his current sparring partner, Stephen A. Smith, with his old one, FS1’s Skip Bayless.

Sharpe couldn’t help but laugh at this, because it is a pretty funny mix-up, while Smith handled the whole thing pretty gracefully. Having said that, Stephen A. Smith is an entertainer first and foremost, and after having a day to chew over Sharpe’s mistake, he figured out a pretty good way to bust his chops. During Tuesday’s edition of the show, Smith showed up with a name tag to give Sharpe a fun little reminder of who he is.

In a bit of news announced at the end of August, Sharpe will be on First Take twice a week during the NFL season. He came to ESPN after leaving Fox Sports, where he and Bayless went toe-to-toe on Undisputed for years. Bayless, of course, used to be the person on the other side of the First Take desk from Smith prior to his departure from Fox.

Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.

Every week, Uproxx is rounding up the best new indie music from the past seven days. This week we got new music from Speedy Ortiz, Jeff Rosenstock, Mannequin Pussy, Slowdive, and more.

While we’re at it, sign up for our newsletter to get the best new indie music delivered directly to your inbox, every Monday.

Yeule — “Inferno”

“Inferno” is the latest dose of ethereal electronic pop. Taken from their forthcoming album Softscars, it pulsates with an otherworldly aura, aided by Nat Ćmiel’s hypnotic vocals: “Heartbeat, heartsink / Heart broke, don’t think / Don’t love, don’t trust,” they sing.

Mannequin Pussy — “I Got Heaven”

Mannequin Pussy have always nailed down an addictive, unhinged punk sound. Their new track “I Got Heaven” proves they’re only getting better: “I went and walked myself / Like a dog without a leash / Now I’m growling at a stranger / I am biting at their knees,” Marisa Dabice shouts as the opening lines.

Greg Mendez — “Lining The Sheets”

Earlier this year, Greg Mendez shared his endearing, poignant self-titled album. “Lining The Sheets” is a stripped-down, sprawling outtake that encapsulates the alluring darkness of his soft sound as he sings earnestly while strumming quietly, Elliott Smith-style.

Speedy Ortiz — Rabbit Rabbit

Speedy Ortiz is back with Rabbit Rabbit, a lively, engaging record with blood pacts, infographics, vampire queens — Sadie Dupuis, who cited Sylvia Plath’s poetry as an influence, offers lyrics littered with references and vivid scenes. It makes for some cinematic indie rock.

Helena Deland — “Bright Green Vibrant Gray”

Helena Deland’s new single “Bright Green Vibrant Gray” is a mesmerizing sliver of her forthcoming album Goodnight Summerland. Pensive and glowing, the song has a texture of profundity as she illustrates an interaction alongside imagery of a beautiful landscape: “Dune grass cool wind blows / I know what I didn’t know before,” she sings.

Katy Kirby — “Cubic Zirconia”

Cool Dry Place was a stunning debut album from Katy Kirby, and she’s back with more. Her new song “Cubic Zirconia” captures what fans loved from her first record — a bewitchingly relaxed sound made better by her charming, conversational singing as she explores topics with depth, in this case navigating artifice and love, as she explained in a statement.

Daneshevskaya — “Big Bird”

Daneshevskaya’s new album Long Is The Tunnel arrives in November, and her glimmering single “Big Bird” makes the wait even harder. The shoegazey instrumentation is the perfect backdrop for her emotional vocals, alternating between fast and slow, conveying the capricious nature of life.

Slowdive — Everything Is Alive

The title Everything Is Alive sums up the significance of Slowdive; their signature brand of shoegaze that helped pioneer the genre breathes life into every sound. Every moving part of their song has importance that makes the listener feel more immersed in their refreshingly strange world.

Ty Segall — “Void”

Ty Segall doesn’t abide by any rules or formula. This is especially true on his off-kilter new song “Void,” which moves at its own hallucinatory pace, made all the more disorienting by his soaring vocals blending into the weird wall of sound. The colorful music video only helps transform the track into a full-on trip.

Jeff Rosenstock — Hellmode

Of course, Jeff Rosenstock had to spice up his album release by sharing Hellmode a day before fans were expecting it. The celebration started early, and the record is as energetic as listeners could hope — with anthems like the explosive “Head” and the infectious “I Wanna Be Wrong” delivering a great dose of upbeat rock.

Beyoncé held her birthday Renaissance Tour show in Los Angeles last night (September 4), and it truly was one for the books. Not only did Diana Ross and Kendrick Lamar join her on stage to celebrate, but the celebs in the audience were making headlines, too.

After months of speculation, actor Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner made their first clear public appearance as a couple. The two were spotted making out during Bey’s concert — and Chalamet was smoking in the venue.

Their outing came as a shock, as last month, reports surfaced in Us Weekly that the couple were reportedly taking a break. According to a source, they hadn’t “been spending that much time together recently because they both have very busy schedules,” but remained friends. (Things have clearly changed since then, or it wasn’t the case.)

Fans, after the clips went viral, had a lot of thoughts. “BEAUTIFUL COUPLE not kylie and timmy,” one user wrote, instead dropping a video of Tom Holland and Zendaya, who were also at last night’s show.

Others had different views, with another user posting, “Okaaaaay I used to be a hater but MAYBE kylie and timmy are cute together.”

Check out some of the fan-shot videos and more reactions to Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner below.

Lauren Boebert has been tweeting through the the August congressional hiatus, so it could be argued that it was a normal month for her. Over the past few weeks, she has described Trump’s mugshot as heroic and also became rootin’ tootin’ furious over his bail conditions in Georgia. Boebert’s attempt to attack the credibility of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was served back to her, but she doesn’t let that stuff get her down.

The MAGA congresswoman continued her tweets through Labor Day weekend, which she used to blame Biden for everything. “As you’re shopping for those Labor Day BBQs, just remember that November 2024 is your chance to vote inflation out of the White House!” she wrote. “Every trip to the grocery store shouldn’t feel like a punch in the gut!”

As well, Boebert announced that she is calling for U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (who she already declared should be impeached) to have his salary cut (or even possibly entirely done away with, along with those of “other failed DOD officials”) over the U.S. government’s botched Afghanistan withdrawal. Granted, that was a fiasco (although, to be fair, the Trump administration’s contributions to the situation did not help), but Boebert had to know that she was setting herself up by tweeting, “If you have failed at your job, you don’t deserve a salary funded by the American people.”

Hmm. Well, Boebert recently showed up too late to vote against the debt ceiling bill that she raged against, and after she claimed to have skipped the vote as a “protest,” video footage revealed her scrambling up the steps to the Capitol. In that light, Boebert’s call to “defund” Austin and company is kind-of a self own?

That’s how people are seeing it. One user tweeted, “Hands down one of the greatest self-own in the history of self-owns. You should refund every penny you’ve collected from American taxpayers while cosplaying as ‘congresswoman.’” Another user chimed in, “And how about yourself? Will you be taking a pay cut, Missy???” Still another: “So, when can we expect all the money back that you were paid?”

The deluge continued with a “Surprise us! File a bill that all members of Congress have to live on minimum wage” and an obligatory, “Irony was just murdered.”

Meanwhile, Congress resumes this week to grapple with another government shutdown threat, so get ready for some more strong MAGA opinions coming your way.

Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul hit the picket line outside Sony Pictures Studios this weekend where they were joined by fellow Breaking Bad cast members supporting the SAG-AFTRA strike. Jesse Plemons, Betsy Brandt, Matt Jones, and Charles Baker were on hand for the mini-reunion, and for good measure Better Caul Saul stars Rhea Seehorn and Patrick Fabian were also on hand.

“We want you to come back to the table with us,” Cranston said in comments addressing the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. “We’re not making them the enemy. They are not villains. These are people that we all will be working with once again at some point. We just want them to see reality.”

“The way things were structured 10 years ago made a lot of sense and it made it more possible for journeymen-type actors, actors in the middle that are working just as a hard or harder,” Plemons said while talking to reporters.

Paul, however, delivered more scathing remarks. The actor, who played Jesse Pinkman on the hit series, blasted the fact that he receives zero residuals for Breaking Bad streaming on Netflix. The show took off like wildfire on the streamer, and according to Paul, he didn’t see a dime, as he revealed in this ET Canada video below.

“I don’t get a piece from Netflix on Breaking Bad to be totally honest and that’s insane to me,” Paul said. “I think a lot of these streamers know that they have been getting away with not paying people a fair wage and now it’s time to pony up.”

(Via The Independent)

The 2023 MTV Video Music Awards is only a week away from being held in New Jersey on Sept. 12. To get fans excited, they have unveiled some of the major award recipients. One of which is Diddy, who is being honored this year with the Global Icon Award.

The specific award first originated from the MTV Europe Music Awards, with the intent of honoring artists who have achieved worldwide success. (Diddy previously hosted the EMAs back in 2002.)

He will accept the official honor and give a speech during the awards show next week. Additionally, Diddy will perform at the VMAs, marking his grand return to the stage since 2005, according to Variety.

Diddy is nominated for a few other awards this year too, including Best Collaboration and Best R&B for the “Creepin (Remix)” with Metro Boomin, The Weeknd, and 21 Savage. He is also up twice for collaborations, as his “Gotta Move On (Queens Remix)” that features Bryson Tiller, Ashanti, and Yung Miami is also nominated.

Finally, Diddy is up for Best Hip-Hop for the same “Gotta Move On” song is also included. (Votes for these categories have since closed.)

Fans can catch this year’s Video Music Awards at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sept. 12 airing live from the Prudential Center.