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April Fool’s Day was supposed to be a bloodbath on Twitter: That’s the day Elon Musk had threatened to remove all blue checkmarks that weren’t subscribed to the service’s not very popular for-pay Twitter Blue. That didn’t happen. What did happen was Musk pettily removed the authentication for a newspaper he didn’t like, then he muddied the language for anyone with a checkmark, making it difficult — but not impossible — to tell who’s a legacy account and who is coughing up a monthly fee.

First up, early on Sunday Musk went after The New York Times, removing the blue checkmark to their main account — but not the others tied up with the publication. At the time no other paper had been similarly affected. As per The Washington Post, Musk effectively made an example of NYT because they, like other publications, many celebrities, and even the White House, announced they would not fork over $8 a month to keep their blue checkmark.

On a pissy post dropped in the middle of the night, Musk called NYT “propaganda” that “isn’t even interesting.” He then called their feed the “equivalent of diarrhea” and “unreadable.” He added, “They would have far more real followers if they only posted their top articles. Same applies to all publications.”

Ever since Musk debuted Twitter Blue late last year, it was somewhat easy to tell who was legacy and who was a subscriber: Simply clicking on the checkmark itself told you which one they were.

That brings us to Musk’s second, much more cataclysmic move: Mid-afternoon Sunday, those with legacy accounts noticed that the description on their accounts, which revealed who was legacy and who was Twitter Blue, had been rewritten, so that all bore the same description: “This account is verified because it’s subscribed to Twitter Blue or is a legacy verified account.”

Among legacy accounts — and those who care about being able to tell which accounts are legit and which are imposters — the move was not well met. Some dragged Musk. Others made sure to let everyone know they were not paying him to use Twitter.

Others asked who to contact at Twitter to simply remove their checkmark entirely.

Some argued that Musk doesn’t understand that blue checkmark verifications are meant to stop people from falling for impersonation accounts of prominent people, including celebrities and journalists. Or maybe he knows and doesn’t care.

Of course, there are ways to circumvent Musk’s damage.

Surely Musk is not pleased with how few celebrities want to pony up to pay for Musk’s expensive toy.

Anyway, chaos reigns on the service where people used to simply post pictures of cats and food they ate.

(Via Washington Post)

It has been a very busy weekend for WWE, as they get set for the second night of WrestleMania 39 on Sunday, but behind the scenes, they’ve also been working hard finalizing a sale that is expected to get done officially on Monday.

Ever since Vince McMahon returned in January to the company after retiring due to numerous scandals, he has been pursuing a sale and they have apparently found a buyer that will keep him around as a significant part. Shortly after his return, his daughter, Stephanie McMahon, stepped down as CEO with Nick Khan elevating to that role.

Per Alex Sherman of CNBC, WWE will sell 51 percent of its shares to Ari Emanuel’s Endeavor Group, which owns UFC, and, most interestingly, the leading companies in wrestling and mixed martial arts will apparently be joined as one publicly traded company.

A deal could be announced as soon as Monday. UFC and WWE are expected to form a new publicly traded company as part of the agreement, according to the people, who declined to be named due to the confidential nature of the discussions.

Endeavor is slated to own 51% of the new combat sports and entertainment company, while WWE shareholders would get 49%, according to the people.

Vince McMahon will stay on board as an executive chairman, with Nick Khan continuing as the president of the wrestling side and Dana White remaining the president of UFC. It’s fascinating to see the two companies, which once were not exactly friendly with one another (but have since embraced each other more), join under one umbrella. How that changes the business for WWE, in particular, remains to be seen, but it will mark the first time it leaves the hands of McMahon family control, albeit with most of the major decision-makers remaining as part of the company, at least initially.

Cordae might not have any regrets about turning down the invite to collaborate with Maroon 5, but when it comes to linking up with contemporary Christian rapper NF, he’s all for it.

Although the “Two Tens” rapper hasn’t commented publicly on the pregnancy news his girlfriend, professional athlete Naomi Osaka, shared at the top of the year, the revenue earned from the tour would certainly add the financial security blanket for the baby’s coming arrival.

The tour will kick off in mid-July, beginning in Columbus, Ohio. Although it will formally wrap up in London this October, Cordae’s last day on tour will be on September 3 in Laval, Quebec. View the full tour schedule below.

Pre-sales for the Hope Tour begin on Wednesday, April 5, at 10 am, while the general sale is set for Friday, April 7, at 10 am local time. For more information, click here.

07/12 — Columbus, OH @ Schottenstein Center
07/14 — Rosemont, IL @ Allstate Arena
07/15 — Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center
07/16 — Lincoln, NE @ Pinnacle Bank Arena
07/18 — Grand Rapids, MI @ Van Andel Arena
07/20 — Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center
07/21 — Boston, MA @ Agganis Arena
07/22 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Liacouras Center
07/24 — Greensboro, NC @ Greensboro Coliseum Complex
07/25 — Huntsville, AL @ Propst Arena at the Von Braun Center
07/26 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
07/28 — Orlando, FL @ Addition Financial Arena ^
07/29 — Duluth, GA @ Gas South Arena
07/31 — North Little Rock, AR @ Simmons Bank Arena
08/01 — Tulsa, OK @ BOK Center
08/02 — Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena
08/04 — Glendale, AZ @ Desert Diamond Arena
08/05 — Anaheim, CA @ Honda Center
08/06 — San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
08/08 — Portland, OR @ Veterans Memorial Coliseum
08/09 — Seattle, WA @ WAMU Theater
08/11 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Vivint Arena
08/12 — Denver, CO @ Ball Arena
08/23 — Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena
08/25 — Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome
08/26 — Edmonton, AB @ Rogers Place
08/27 — Saskatoon, SK @ SaskTel Centre
08/29 — Winnipeg, MB @ Canada Life Centre
09/01 — Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena
09/02 — Ottawa, ON @ Canadian Tire Centre
09/03 — Laval, QC @ Place Bell

^ – without Cordae

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

DDG may have admitted that he is indeed “way too petty” on his latest single, but fans of his girlfriend, singer and actress Halle Bailey, are adding that he also jokes way too much. For the large part, most musicians held back from participating in any over-the-top April Fool’s Day pranks. But apparently Usher and DDG didn’t get the memo.

While Usher’s was a short-lived professional prank that he would be joined on stage on April 1 by his former collaborator Beyoncé within seconds, he revealed that it wasn’t going to happen. On the other hand, DDG’s prank took things a bit further.

In a tweet posted at 9:53 am, the rapper uploaded a picture of an ultrasound with the caption “can’t wait to be your dad .” Although he didn’t explicitly state who the expecting mother was, fans assumed that the mommy-to-be was The Little Mermaid actress, sending social media into a spiral.

Fans quickly headed over to Bailey’s social media profiles to see if they had missed anything. But her last post was of herself in a bikini with her mid-drift exposed on vacation, celebrating her birthday on March 27.

Later, just before 2 pm, the rapper returned to Twitter to confirm that it was just an April Fool’s Day prank. DDG is known for trolling and even pulling pranks on fans. In fact, there’s a long-running conspiracy theory prank that the rapper continues to do, known as the “real DDG voice.”

Even DDG’s family isn’t shielded from his trolling, as shown across his YouTube page.

So, no, Halle Bailey is not pregnant.

Usher may be the uncrowned king of Vegas, thanks to the success of his Usher: My Way Las Vegas residency, but on April 1, he almost became the most hated man in America — or at least Raleigh, North Carolina. During his set at Dreamville Festival, the “Glu” singer decided to have a little fun with the crowd.

Instead of provocatively feeding fans strawberries, the musician wanted to step into the role of prankster before April Fool’s Day came to a close. Before the audio engineer could cue up the next track in his set list, Usher instructed them to pump the breaks. The recording artist then took a moment to address the eager crowd.

“I said I would have a special surprise for you tonight, ladies and gentlemen,” said the singer, continuing, “You guys want to know what that surprise is?”

As the crowd’s anticipation grew, he declared, “Ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, put your hands together for the one, the only — Beyoncé.” The concertgoers erupted with cheer as the lights dimmed. But after a few seconds, when the “Break My Soul” singer didn’t take the stage, fans grew uneasy. Usher then confessed that it was all a prank, “April fools.”

While the pair have collaborated in the past on music, in music videos, and onstage, Dreamville Festival 2023 was not going to be the place for their reunion.

Fans took to social media to share their reaction to the prank, with some even claiming to have been in attendance.

Look’s like if you want to see The Bey Hive queen, you’re going to have to grab tickets to the Renaissance World Tour.

Donald Trump is set to be arraigned in Manhattan on Tuesday after becoming the first U.S. president to ever be indicted on criminal charges. It’s unclear how it will go down. Some of his cronies, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, are already planning on protesting. Trump himself has predicted violence. But some are trying to find the humor in this historic situation, including noted funny man William Barr.

The former attorney general, who broke with Trump over his baseless claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election, went on Fox News Sunday to discuss the indictment. He imagined the forthcoming trial, which could find Trump himself taking the stand to defend himself. Barr didn’t think that was so hot a plan.

“Generally, I think it’s a bad idea to go on the stand,” Barr explained. He then started fighting back a chuckle as he imagined what such a thing could be like. “I think it’s particularly [a] bad idea for Trump because he lacks all self-control, and it’d be very difficult to prepare him and keep him testifying in a prudent fashion.” At this point, he gave up and just let it rip.

Barr spent nearly two years working with Trump in the Justice Department, and like many old guard types who worked with him, he came — eventually — to see through him. He knows the guy way too well, so it’s probably even funnier to him to imagine what a noted fabulist with epic self-control issues would do in a place where he has to tell the truth or make his already febrile situation even worse. Not that anyone should envy him.

(Via The Daily Beast)

After months of speculation, it seems like the Queen of Latin music is finally looking to return to the US on a full-time basis. Shakira is working on her new album, and the “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53” singer may also be looking for a fresh start in other parts of her life as well. After her messy public split from her former professional footballer Gerard Piqué, the musician has held nothing back, even seemingly shading him in a Valentine’s Day video on TikTok.

During their marriage, Shakira, Piqué, and their two sons shared a home in Barcelona, Spain, just feet away from her ex-husband’s mother’s home. Now, according to the Daily Mail, Shakira is leaving Spain behind to find a home for her and her children in sunny Miami, Florida. The outlet shared that before settling into their new home, the family will go on a relaxing vacation first.

In a screengrab captured by Pop Crave, Shakira uploaded a picture from the window of a place with a caption that roughly translates to “But things aren’t always like we dream it. Sometimes we run, but we don’t reach. Never doubt that I’ll be here.”

The Daily Mail also shared that the move was planned to align with the Miami private school academic schedule, to ensure that her sons will be able to enter the school system after spring break. The reporting goes on to allege that her ex is “Very annoyed because he has been told with very little time,” and “He disagrees with the children not finishing the school year in Barcelona.”

Shakira and Piqué formally separated back in June 2022. Although it is unclear whether or not their divorce has been finalized in the courts, the two have moved on. Piqué has been spotted out with his new girlfriend on several occasions.

As draft season inches every closer, more attention is starting to shift to prospects, particularly for fans of teams who are starting to see their play-in dreams dissipate.

While there are plenty of questions about how the top-10 will shake out, there is no question about who is going No. 1 — as has been the case for two years. Whoever wins the NBA Draft Lottery will be taking Victor Wembanyama with the first overall pick, and they will do so without any real consideration for other options. That’s not because there’s not talent beyond him, but because he is such a singular, unique talent that he is someone you simply cannot pass up.

On Sunday, Wembanyama showed off his freakish abilities once again by pulling off a feat I cannot remember ever seeing before, when he pulled a stepback three and then, realizing it was off line, ran in for a putback dunk off his own shot.

I’ve seen players get their own rebounds off a miss and even go back up quickly for a bucket, but to just glide in, taking four steps from a stepback three to taking off mid-paint, and dunk it is not something I can recall ever seeing before.

Wembanyama isn’t without room to grow as a player, as there’s plenty to refine and build, but he just has a physical skillset that no one else on earth can match. If he taps into the majority of that potential, he figures to be someone’s face of the franchise for years to come. If he reaches his full potential, he’ll become the best player in the world.

Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour is undoubtedly the hottest ticket in the nation, no matter where it plants its roots. Whether it’s the impressive three-plus hour set, the epic fan outfits, or the video footage uploaded to TikTok following each performance, Swifties (both celebrities and non-celebrities) are having the time of their lives.

During the tour’s latest stop, singer and actress Selena Gomez was sure to show her “industry bestie” love by not only attending the show but bringing her younger sister Gracie Teefey along with her. Gracie is no stranger to the spotlight, having attended several high-profile events with her sister in the past, most recently the Golden Globe Awards. Her adorable brief stage side intermission during the show for an adorable gift exchange was a walk in the park for her.

Dressed in a fun purple halter top skater dress, Gracie was seen walking at the ground level surrounding the stage to hand the singer something during her performance. As Gracie got closer it appeared that she handed off a homemade friendship bracelet to the singer. In exchange for the heartfelt gift, Swift took off her hat to gift it to Gracie, to which she excitedly accepted and then returned to her seat.

Gracie wasn’t the only kid to gift her with something. At another show, a 7-year-old fan wrote Swift a heartfelt letter.

Gomez tried to keep a pretty love profile during the show. But she was sure to follow the theme of the show, dressing as 2020 Swift, sporting the cardigan from the singer’s Folklore album cover.

April Fool’s Day was a little quiet this year, with little in the way of high-profile, outlandish pranks. But one Manhattan audience were victim to a good kind of ruse. As per Deadline, moviegoers at the Alamo Drafthouse in Lower Manhattan who were expecting to see a repertory screening of Ari Aster’s Midsommar were instead treated to his latest opus. That film is Beau is Afraid, the director’s much-anticipated follow-up to his nightmarish folk horror hit. They also learned that the film runs an 179 minutes — one hour shorter than what was originally reported.

Details remain scant about Beau is Afraid, but we do know it stars Joaquin Phoenix as “a paranoid man [who] embarks on an epic odyssey to get home to his mother,” according to the press release. Aster, meanwhile, has compared it to The Lord of the Rings. Joining the Oscar-winning actor are Nathan Lane, Amy Ryan, Kylie Rogers, Denise Ménochet, Parker Posey, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Richard Kind, Hayley Squires, and Michael Gandolfini.

During a post-film Q&A with Aster that was moderated by no less than Emma Stone, the filmmaker told a story about when Phoenix collapsed during a take. “There was a scene that was very intense for Patti and it was a shot that was on Patti, it was not on him and all of a sudden he fell out of frame,” Aster told the crowd. “I was really pissed ’cause it was a really good take. It felt confusing so I went around the corner and he was collapsed.”

He went on: “I knew it was bad because he was letting people touch him and people were tending to him and he was allowing it. The point is that he fainted in somebody else’s take, he wasn’t on camera and he was helping them, he was in it for them to the point where he collapsed. It’s very poetic that he collapsed in somebody else’s shot.”

You can watch a behind-the-scenes look at Beau is Afraid below. It hits theaters on April 14.

(Via Deadline)