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Everything’s bigger in Texas, including the musicial collaborations. Miranda Lambert’s new single “If You Were Mine” featuring Leon Bridges is the latest example. On the track, the two Texas natives create magic as they blend together elements of country and R&B. Lambert hailing from Longview and Bridges from Fort Worth, the pair pay homage to the Lone Star State.

The Grammy Award-winning songwriter draws metaphors from across the country side, including the Frio River, as heard in the line, “I’d make sure your stars are shining / Sure as the Frio’s winding / I’d bottle you up like lightning / I’d rope the moon for you / A million times / That’s what I’d do / If you were mine.”

In a statement, Lambert gushed about her collaborator, saying, “I have been a big fan of Leon for a while because he is very authentic as an artist and I love his music.”

Later, the singer spoke about the hometown tribute throughout the lyrics, saying, “Since we are both from Texas, we threw in a few Texas references, of course – the Frio River being one. When we finished this song, we sent it to Leon in hopes that he would want to collaborate and we were so glad that he said yes. I have really enjoyed getting to know him and I’m happy to have him as a new friend.”

Watch the video above.

While there is no drama as to what happens with the first pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, where the San Antonio Spurs have likely already turned in a draft card to Adam Silver that just reads VICTOR WEMBANYAMA, the rest of the top 10 is far less assured.

The Charlotte Hornets will likely be choosing between Brandon Miller and Scoot Henderson at No. 2, although they’re also bringing in the Thompson twins for workouts as well. With Miller as the expected choice, but far from a guarantee, it leaves a lot of uncertainty as to who will be available when Portland is on the clock at No. 3. Given the Blazers would like to trade that pick to bring in veteran help in order to, once again, try building a contender around Damian Lillard, not knowing who will be available at that spot makes it difficult to pin down a trade before Draft night.

The Blazers front office will certainly be working the phones prior to then, but they might find themselves needing to hammer out a deal in the five minute window in which they are on the clock on June 22. As Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports reports, that, along with Portland’s desire to land a veteran for the pick rather than trading down or acquiring future picks, has other teams “skeptical” of their ability to find a trade partner.

While the Trail Blazers have signaled an openness to move that No. 3 pick — general manager Joe Cronin told Yahoo Sports in May his team is “trying to win and trying to maximize Damian [Lillard’s] timeline” — rival teams are skeptical Portland will find a suitable trade partner for that coveted selection before the Blazers come on the clock.

…

Trail Blazers officials have left inquiring teams with the impression that Shaedon Sharpe, the No. 7 pick in last year’s draft, is off limits in any dialogue regarding the No. 3 pick.

The Sharpe note is also interesting as the young wing is their most intriguing player to add to trade talks, but if he’s off limits, that will limit the caliber of player they can be targeting. All of this sounds awfully similar to the situation Golden State found itself in back in 2021 when they had the No. 2 pick and the entire league knew they would rather trade it than make a selection. Because of that, they struggled to find a trade partner willing to move the kind of player they were seeking in order to jump up to that spot (albeit in what was considered a weaker draft). The result was Golden State taking James Wiseman, thinking he was a better fit than LaMelo Ball, with Wiseman not lasting two years with the Warriors before being shipped off to Detroit in a three-team deal that brought Gary Payton II back to the Bay.

Portland could find itself in a very similar spot if the Hornets select Miller, as Henderson would be the obvious best player available, but his immediate fit with Damian Lillard (and Anfernee Simons) is a bit questionable. The hope for Portland would be that Henderson is a more coveted prospect than either Wiseman or Ball were in the 2021 Draft, and if he’s the one still on the board after Charlotte picks, their phone should be ringing. That said, teams are typically terrified of making a trade at the top of the draft that looks like they didn’t land value, which is usually hard to do when trading a pick for a veteran.

Teams with the caliber of player that Portland would think could get them back into playoff contention in the West aren’t usually looking to move up in drafts to add young talent that (usually) take longer to impact winning. What makes the Portland situation even more fascinating than Golden State in 2021 is, failing to find a trade partner doesn’t just mean trying to get healthy and running it back with a championship squad like the Warriors did. The Blazers need an influx of talent to even be a playoff team in the West. If they don’t trade the pick, it would certainly seem to indicate they are choosing to get younger, which opens the door to even more speculation about Lillard.

A few notes before we begin:

• This is a list of sketches from the third season of I Think You Should Leave ranked by how much I — me, Brian, hello — liked them
• We have done all of this before and will probably do it again
• Please do not yell at me
• Make your own list if you think you are so great

Here we go.

26. Metaloid Maniac (Episode 6)

There are a bunch of recurring themes in this show, some of which we’ll get to shortly, but I really enjoy that between this sketch and the Karl Havoc one from season two, one of the bigger ones is “guy has a costume that’s too bulky and/or heavy.” I hope next season opens with Santa Claus in a Crashmore sequel where he’s become 50 percent robot for some reason. The best part here is that this is one of the more ridiculous ideas I can think of and it’s still like a four on the ITYSL insanity scale. The scale goes to 100.

25. Gelutol (Episode 4)

Some notes:

• Multiple twists here, which is fun
• I like that he’s screwing with the guy’s wife, too, just for no reason
• I’m going to use “we were talking about getting killed” as an out next time I get caught talking about someone and don’t want to admit it

Moving on.

24. Dirty Songs (Episode 6)

ON ONE HAND: I didn’t love this sketch as much as I thought I would when the action got started.

ON THE OTHER HAND: I really do enjoy the name “Don Bondarley.”

Let’s talk about this more at Corset later.

23. Street Sets (Episode 1)

[one week ago] You know, I bet I would never laugh at a video of an old man getting his face smashed into a parking meter…

[today] I stand corrected.

22. Conflict Resolution (Episode 6)

The whole “banana breath” thing is funny in the context of the sketch and I do enjoy the idea of someone becoming so pleased with a C- joke they made that they try to make t-shirts to commemorate it, but the highlight for me is the phrasing of “How big are you?” Not “What size are you?” No. “How big are you?” That’s gonna stick with me for a long time. In a good way. I hope

21. Ponytail Fiasco (Episode 2)

Here’s another one where the pointless recurring ITYSL bit makes the sketch for me. Because I wasn’t loving this one at first. Which was weird. On paper, I should have loved this one. It’s got so much I like: Will Forte, unfortunate haircuts, screaming, etc. But I wasn’t fully into it until the lady started looking through his camera roll and there were just dozens of pictures of cigars.

I don’t know what exactly about cigars makes me laugh, but it does almost every time. Tim Robinson gets this.

20. Team Building (Episode 1)

What I like here is the left turn this one takes. Because, like, you think it’s gonna be about Tim Robinson taking it too far, with the fake water splashing and all the talk about orgies, but nope. In marches a hero from out of frame, with a real bottle of water and a problem with getting too hyper.

This is one of those screencaps that you’ll see a lot on social media in the coming months, I suspect.

19. Volcano (Episode 5)

Some notes:

• There are not a lot of sketches in this show that end on a sweet little note like this
• I shouted a little at the appearance by Tom Scharpling, host of The Best Show
• Probably won’t be able to look at a highlighter the same way ever again

It’s fine.

18. Friend Group (Episode 4)

Lots going on here but I think my favorite thing is that Tim Robinson is wearing a suit that’s like five sizes too big and no one ever mentions it even one time.

17. Virtual Reality (Episode 2)

I liked parts of this sketch already, starting with the phrase “I didn’t know how to work the body” and extending to Tim Robinson’s consistently amazing ability to contort his body in new and hilarious ways. All of it good and fun. But then Apple went and announced its crazy expensive new VR headset just a few days later and made the whole thing even funnier somehow.

I like to imagine someone at Apple watching this sketch last week and knowing their big announcement was coming and just sighing very deeply about the memes that were headed their way.

16. Darmine Dog Doors (Episode 2)

Some notes:

• It is a very ITYSL thing that something this insane stemmed from a property line dispute and a guy’s partner getting flipped by a dancer
• I choose to believe they used 85 percent of their CGI budget on the beast in this sketch
• Imagine how freaked out you’d be if a pig in a Nixon mask crawled through your doggy door

Lots to think about.

15. Dog Hair (Episode 3)

The reveal that he got the dog haircut because of a magazine mixup involving Bryan Cranston was so stupid that I could not help but laugh at loud at my computer like a lil sicko.

14. Live Sitcom Taping (Episode 2)

See, I wasn’t feeling this sketch at first. It was one of those where it felt like the idea for it was better than the execution. But then it cut to the montage at the end with the limo and the Super Bowl ring and the watch exploding and blasting springs everywhere and things clicked into place for me. I would be angry, too. I would want people to know. It all seems kinda reasonable, in context.

I said “kinda.”

13. Tasty Time Vids (Episode 6)

This is an ITYSL special, from the normal situation (ordering lunch at work) to the awkward escalation (coworker realizes the person isn’t following him on Instagram and adds himself without asking) to the deranged twist as it develops (terrible sketch comedy, death threats, etc.). Which is great. It’s one of the things this show does so well.

But that’s not why I have this sketch in the top half of these rankings. I have this sketch in the top half of these rankings because Connor O’Malley’s little pouty overreaction faces and arm crossing at the beginning is just about the peak of physical comedy to me. Watch it again. Go. Do it.

12. Wedding Photographer (Episode 5)

There is a chance — A CHANCE —that I am overrating this sketch because it has Tim Meadows in it and I am predisposed to liking anything with Tim Meadows in it because Tim Meadows is the best.

I do not care.

I feel great about it.

11. Cardboard Cutout (Episode 3)

I’m sorry. I really am. But if you do not see the comedic value in a sketch that starts with Patti Harrison abusing a cardboard cutout and ends with a reveal that involves her declaring herself “a rat mom,” then there’s just nothing I can do for you. Go watch another show. Lord knows there are plenty.

10. Shirt Brothers (Episode 4)

This one is divisive among my friend group (a good group of guys otherwise). Some people loved it. Some people hated it. Some people thought it was good but went on too long. I can see both sides of this.

But here’s why it cracks the top ten for me: It gave me that screencap up there of my beloved Biff Wiff. I’m going to use it so much. I don’t know if this is a good reason to rank this sketch above ones that made me laugh more, but I am doing it anyway.

9. Feed Eggs (Episode 2)

Two things worth noting here:

• I could absolutely see myself getting addicted to a stupid game like this where the rules don’t make sense
• Uh oh someone actually created it

It’s a good thing I work from home. I don’t want to have to explain an egg bush to anyone.

8. Barley Tonight (Episode 1)

Some notes:

• I originally had this ranked lower until I shared the draft with my friend Ryan Perry — who runs the objectively perfect I Think You Should League Pass Twitter account — and he yelled at me about it
• Ryan was correct
• Please again note how great Tim Robinson is at flailing his body into various positions in the pursuit of getting a laugh

Good sketch.

7. Stop Talking About Your Kids (Episode 5)

Here’s another one where the twist got me. I thought this was going to be a sketch where Tim Robinson made Jason Schwartzman’s character’s life hell by stalking him throughout the party and borderline torturing him every time he mentions his kids. I was sure that was what we were looking at.

But nope!

The actual twist is that Schwartzman’s character ends up having a blast — cigars again, for the record — while Robinson ends up in a prison of his own creation. It’s a good bit. Shoutout to Godzilla the Gorilla.

6. Jellybean (Episode 3)

This is a fun sketch to try to explain to someone who doesn’t watch the show. “So there’s this guy who’s like a mime and he does shows where he has to pay the audience every time he breaks and starts talking but a bunch of frat dudes hear about it and it becomes a whole thing where they show up drunk and holding red Solo cups and they shout ‘WHAT ARE YOU DOING?’ at him over and over until he melts down on stage about it.” Everyone looks at you like you’re crazy. It’s a good time.

5. The Zip Line Saga (Episode 1, Episode 4)

Two things here…

THING ONE: The idea of a guy on a dating show just becoming obsessed with the zipline at the pool to the degree that he starts trying to sabotage the other contestants in the hopes he can stay and keep using it… I mean, that’s just good stuff.

THING TWO: I made a GIF of the zipline.

I love how serious he is about it. Look at his face. The man is not kidding around at all.

4. Driving Crooner (Episode 1)

This one is, by far, the one I’ve seen referenced most often on social media in the days since the third season dropped. There’s a very good reason for that: it’s really just a lot of fun.

I mean…

Absolutely the stupidest thing possible and I love it very much.

3. Pay It Forward (Episode 3)

THE GOOD: This is one of those sketches where it’s so good that you get surprised no one else thought of it first. Like, of course someone would take the “pay it forward” drive-thru thing too far at some point, to a ridiculous degree. It’s so dumb that it’s kind of brilliant like that.

THE BAD: I was out last weekend and paid with cash for something and told the guy at the register to keep the coins in the little dish for someone else and he goes “Paying it forward like that always seems to work out” and it took all I had not to look him square in the eyes and shout “55 BURGERS, 55 FRIES, 55 TACOS, 55 PIES, 55 COKES, 100 TATER TOTS, 100 PIZZAS, 100 TENDERS, 100 MEATBALLS, 100 COFFEES, 55 WINGS, 55 SHAKES, 55 PANCAKES, 55 PASTAS, 55 PEPPERS, AND 155 TATERS” like a lunatic.

I really don’t know why the number 55 makes this so funny. But it does. Let’s not overthink it.

2. Pacific Proposal Park (Episode 4)

Some notes:

• Sam Richardson is almost always funny at everything he does and this is no exception
• There is no reason at all to end this sketch with a professional wrestler’s penis popping but they did it anyway and I appreciate that
• I really like that one of the wrestlers is named Toilet Truck

Happy for everyone here. Especially me.

1. ABX Heart Monitor (Episode 3)

The thing I like here is the layers. It starts as a sketch about a guy with heart problems and then you find out some of his heart problems stem from him dancing like an animal at exclusive night clubs and then the doctor gets jealous about this guy getting into the nightclubs and starts using the monitor to track him and then you find out the guy only got into the clubs because he built the party deck for one of them and then you find out the party deck collapsed and then the sketch just ends with this collection of words in this order…

Which is all great. But I’m ranking this at number one mostly because of the way Tim Robinson says “yeah, I dip in there sometimes.”

Good show. Ready for season four whenever he is.

George Santos is so adamant about protecting the identity of the anonymous donors who paid his $500,000 bail that he actually had his lawyers send a letter to the judge in his fraud case where the freshman congressman claimed he’d go to jail before outing his benefactors.

“Here in the instant case, the suretors are likely to suffer great distress, may lose their jobs, and God forbid, may suffer physical injury,” Santos’ lawyer Joseph Murray wrote to Judge Anne Shields. “My client would rather surrender to pretrial detainment than subject these suretors to what will inevitably come.”

Murray buttressed his argument by claiming that both he and Santos have been the target of death threats over the identity of the bail donors.

Via Insider:

“The fact that someone emailed me my own letter back to me soon after I filed it with the Court, tells us that they are just ready and waiting to pounce,” the lawyer wrote. “A few hours later on Friday, June 2, 2023, I received a call wherein a male voice just shouted what sounded like, ‘Who paid Santos’ bond?’ Again, they are just waiting to pounce on the suretors.”

Judge Shields didn’t buy it. On Tuesday, she ordered that the identities of Santos’ backers must be unsealed and gave the congressman a “brisk schedule” to appeal that decision, according to Law and Crime managing editor Adam Klasfeld.

(Via Insider, Adam Klasfeld on Twitter)

George Santos is so adamant about protecting the identity of the anonymous donors who paid his $500,000 bail that he actually had his lawyers send a letter to the judge in his fraud case where the freshman congressman claimed he’d go to jail before outing his benefactors.

“Here in the instant case, the suretors are likely to suffer great distress, may lose their jobs, and God forbid, may suffer physical injury,” Santos’ lawyer Joseph Murray wrote to Judge Anne Shields. “My client would rather surrender to pretrial detainment than subject these suretors to what will inevitably come.”

Murray buttressed his argument by claiming that both he and Santos have been the target of death threats over the identity of the bail donors.

Via Insider:

“The fact that someone emailed me my own letter back to me soon after I filed it with the Court, tells us that they are just ready and waiting to pounce,” the lawyer wrote. “A few hours later on Friday, June 2, 2023, I received a call wherein a male voice just shouted what sounded like, ‘Who paid Santos’ bond?’ Again, they are just waiting to pounce on the suretors.”

Judge Shields didn’t buy it. On Tuesday, she ordered that the identities of Santos’ backers must be unsealed and gave the congressman a “brisk schedule” to appeal that decision, according to Law and Crime managing editor Adam Klasfeld.

(Via Insider, Adam Klasfeld on Twitter)

Dua Lipa was facing a lawsuit that claimed she copied her hit song “Levitating” from Artikal Sound System’s 2017 song, “Live Your Life.” In the first (and likely, final) ruling on the case, US District Judge Sunshine S. Sykes ruled that nobody who worked on Lipa’s song had access to the one from Artikal and dismissed the case.

The band had previously claimed the brother-in-law of one of their members taught guitar to a woman who worked with Lipa’s co-writer, according to Billboard.

“These attenuated links, which bear little connection to either of the two musical compositions at issue here, also do not suggest a reasonable likelihood that defendants actually encountered plaintiffs’ song,” Sykes wrote.

Artikal Sound System also pointed out that they had sold “several hundred” CDs and the song was popular enough to have been heard by the “Levitating” writers.

“Plaintiffs’ failure to specify how frequently they performed ‘Live Your Life’ publicly during the specified period, where these performances took place, and the size of the venues and/or audiences precludes the Court from finding that Plaintiffs’ live performances of the song plausibly contributed to its saturation of markets in which Defendants would have encountered it,” Sykes added.

Currently, the lawsuit is over, unless Artikal Sound System decide to return to Sykes with changes for an “amended complaint.”

Dua Lipa is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Dua Lipa was facing a lawsuit that claimed she copied her hit song “Levitating” from Artikal Sound System’s 2017 song, “Live Your Life.” In the first (and likely, final) ruling on the case, US District Judge Sunshine S. Sykes ruled that nobody who worked on Lipa’s song had access to the one from Artikal and dismissed the case.

The band had previously claimed the brother-in-law of one of their members taught guitar to a woman who worked with Lipa’s co-writer, according to Billboard.

“These attenuated links, which bear little connection to either of the two musical compositions at issue here, also do not suggest a reasonable likelihood that defendants actually encountered plaintiffs’ song,” Sykes wrote.

Artikal Sound System also pointed out that they had sold “several hundred” CDs and the song was popular enough to have been heard by the “Levitating” writers.

“Plaintiffs’ failure to specify how frequently they performed ‘Live Your Life’ publicly during the specified period, where these performances took place, and the size of the venues and/or audiences precludes the Court from finding that Plaintiffs’ live performances of the song plausibly contributed to its saturation of markets in which Defendants would have encountered it,” Sykes added.

Currently, the lawsuit is over, unless Artikal Sound System decide to return to Sykes with changes for an “amended complaint.”

Dua Lipa is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Foo Fighters are settling back into life on the road following the death of Taylor Hawkins and introduction of new drummer Josh Freese. As they do, Dave Grohl has shared a touching new note, which may actually tease a surprise appearance at Glastonbury later this month.

The handwritten message reads, “Hey. It’s been a while….. Now that we’ve returned from our first run of shows, I felt compelled to reach out and thank you all for being there for us. Every night, when I see you singing, it makes me sing harder. When I see you screaming, it makes me scream louder. When I see your tears, it brings me to tears. And when I see your joy, it brings me joy. But, I see you… and it feels so good to see you, churning up these emotions together. Because we’ve always done this together. Time and time again. See you soon.”

Aside from just being a nice message, the phrase “churning up” is significant. Last week, the Glastonbury set times were unveiled, and that left some wondering just who the heck a mysterious artist called The Churnups is. Some speculated it would be a surprise performance from Pulp, but one of the band members denied it. Now, though, following the phrasing of Grohl’s note, there’s speculation that it’s actually Foo Fighters who are set to head to Worthy Farm from June 21 to 25 (specifically, “The Churnups” is scheduled to perform that Friday on the Pyramid Stage).

Foo Fighters are settling back into life on the road following the death of Taylor Hawkins and introduction of new drummer Josh Freese. As they do, Dave Grohl has shared a touching new note, which may actually tease a surprise appearance at Glastonbury later this month.

The handwritten message reads, “Hey. It’s been a while….. Now that we’ve returned from our first run of shows, I felt compelled to reach out and thank you all for being there for us. Every night, when I see you singing, it makes me sing harder. When I see you screaming, it makes me scream louder. When I see your tears, it brings me to tears. And when I see your joy, it brings me joy. But, I see you… and it feels so good to see you, churning up these emotions together. Because we’ve always done this together. Time and time again. See you soon.”

Aside from just being a nice message, the phrase “churning up” is significant. Last week, the Glastonbury set times were unveiled, and that left some wondering just who the heck a mysterious artist called The Churnups is. Some speculated it would be a surprise performance from Pulp, but one of the band members denied it. Now, though, following the phrasing of Grohl’s note, there’s speculation that it’s actually Foo Fighters who are set to head to Worthy Farm from June 21 to 25 (specifically, “The Churnups” is scheduled to perform that Friday on the Pyramid Stage).

Tom Cruise bungee jumping into a volcano, or whatever, is the star of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, but one of the essential elements to the franchise’s success is the supporting cast. Ving Rhames has been there since the beginning, while Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, and Vanessa Kirby are recurring fan favorites. Dead Reckoning Part One will add new members to the team, including Hayley Atwell as… someone!

We don’t know much about who the Marvel Cinematic Universe favorite is playing — and neither did director and co-writer Christopher McQuarrie at first.

“Hayley’s character didn’t have a name for a long, long time,” he told Empire. “She has her own objective, and she more or less becomes ensnared in this movie. What you have here is a character who absolutely does not belong in a Mission: Impossible movie, and she’s doing everything she can to get out of it.” Eventually, she was given a name, Grace, and advice from Cruise.

[Atwell] was also working alongside Tom Cruise, whose stunt chops are several leagues beyond what you might call an A-game. Providing startling insight into the Cruiser’s mindset, Atwell reveals that, “Tom would often say, ‘Don’t be safe, be competent.’ That was a great mantra for me.”

If “don’t be safe, be competent” isn’t tattooed somewhere on Cruise’s body, it’s definitely written on his bathroom mirror.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One opens on July 12th.

(Via Empire)