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Brittni Donaldson always saw her future as a pro basketball player, but her knees had other plans.

Donaldson battled numerous injuries in her time at Northern Iowa, including meniscus tears, a failed microfracture surgery, and the residual pain she felt from the culmination. Prior to her senior season, she was faced with a decision.

“Stop playing the game, or you’re going to need a knee replacement by the time you’re 30,” Donaldson recalls doctors telling her. “Or, we can try this other surgery, a femoral osteotomy, typically done on geriatric patients who are still very active and don’t want a knee replacement.”

A femoral osteotomy is a major procedure, where surgeons break your femur and re-align it with a wedge to shift weight to parts of the knee with more healthy cartilage. It’s like getting an entirely new leg. Your gait changes and you have to relearn how to walk and run. The basics and foundations of movement are shaken, and that’s before you even get back to the court and try to find your game again. Not ready to give up on her basketball dreams, Donaldson opted to give it a try.

“I wanted to continue playing. I wanted to finish my basketball career in uniform, on the court, and on my own terms. It was one of the most challenging parts of my life,” says Donaldson.

She spent six weeks unable to put weight on her leg. Eight hours a day were spent in a small machine that would move her leg and stimulate her muscles. After a grueling rehab process, Donaldson was able to return to the court and play in a limited role her final year, experiencing her senior night as an active player.

Donaldson wouldn’t wish her injury on anyone, but she credits it for giving her a new perspective on life and basketball. It was the first time she was forced to stop playing and shift her focus, spending more time on the bench and alongside the coaching staff than she ever had. She began to see the game more through a coach’s lens and her interest was piqued in unexpected ways.

After graduating with a degree in statistics and actuarial sciences from UNI, Donaldson took a job as an analyst at Stats Perform, a sports data and tracking company, so she could blend her love of math and numbers with basketball, working odd and long hours watching games and making sure the tracking data acquired during games didn’t have abnormalities. Having found her new passion, she was able to secure a job with the Toronto Raptors in 2017, signing on as a data analyst before eventually joining Nick Nurse’s coaching staff in 2019.

After a year behind the bench, Donaldson further honed herself as a coach during the G-League bubble, moving up front as one of the lead assistants on Patrick Mutombo’s Raptors 905 staff. It was a major change in responsibilities, as behind the bench you provide input and suggestions in-game from a supporting role. Moving into one of the lead assistant roles brings you more directly into the team, running drills in practice, managing substitutions, presenting film to the team, creating scouting reports, and presenting scouts plans of opposition to the team.

“It only lasted six or seven weeks, and I learned so much in that short amount of time. It propelled my development and I’m so appreciative for that time… we had a really great group,” says Donaldson.

After a few years in the Raptors organization, Donaldson sought out a new challenge joining the Hamilton Honey Badgers in the Canadian Elite Basketball League, serving as an assistant coach and director of coaching development as the Honey Badgers won their first CEBL title in 2022.

Director of coaching development is an uncommon role, and something Donaldson found a great deal of joy in. She helped plan out and redesign practices and film sessions to better impact development and learning, cutting the chafe and finding more intuitive ways to make learning stick with players and make coaches more efficient. She’d sit down with other coaches each day and go through the practice plan beforehand, finding ways to tailor it and tweak it to emulate in-game scenarios.

“Often times, coaches want practice to look really nice and neat, but learning happens most when you’re simulating your environment as much as possible. Maybe there’s more variables at play and maybe it’s a little messy, but your players are going to remember it more because we made them problem solve on the spot. We didn’t just give them the answer… so in a game when the problem comes up, they already know how to solve it, they’ve done it before,” says Donaldson.

She got to experiment and test new theories in a way that’s difficult to in the non-stop NBA season. The continual grind of prepping for a game, breaking it down, then rinsing and repeating 81 more times doesn’t leave room for bigger projects and internal evaluation. One of those projects Donaldson got to work on was launching Strata Athletics, a development first alternative to youth leagues rooted mostly in “winning at all costs.” Instead, skill development, maintaining presence, and creating an environment where error is allowed and encouraged are paramount principles.

Their coaching curriculum is research driven for each age group. They encourage players to be active in other sports. Everything is about process over results, enjoying the process itself, and keeping the game joyous.

“It (The CEBL) gave me that time and space to imagine where I can leave my fingerprint in this world and industry, and that’s where Strata was born. Me and my co-founders all had a very similar vision to how we wanted to impact sports and society. If we can impact these kids with sport, they can take these tools throughout the rest of their lives and be better overall holistic humans because of it,” says Donaldson.

It wasn’t long before the NBA came calling again, as Dwane Casey reached out in the midst of the CEBL season trying to lure her to Detroit. Casey was the coach in Toronto when Donaldson started with the Raptors, and while their overlap was brief, she had made enough of an impression that when he had an opening on his bench with the Pistons she was his first option to fill it. They went back and forth for a month on what her role could look like, but eventually Donaldson jumped on board. She wanted the opportunity to work with a new organization in the league, a new challenge, and new people.

The Raptors were a vet heavy roster during her time there with players who know who they are, what they do, and have routines in place. With a young and building team in Detroit, it’s an incredibly different kind of coaching job, one that piqued her interest given her proclivity for player development. Detroit’s organizational makeup also played a role, as Donaldson was walking into a Pistons franchise with women working in all levels of the team, something that isn’t often the case in the NBA.

“It’s exciting for me to be able to look around this organization and see women in every room I walk in,” says Donaldson.

Now in the midst of her first season with the Pistons as an assistant coach, back on an NBA bench with a development focus, Donaldson’s career has taken a remarkably circuitous route to come full circle. Her injury is long behind her, but the path it set her on is still ablaze. Her experience and frame of mind that she formed because of it have given her a unique outlook that makes her an asset in the coaching ranks.

Pistons second-year wing Isaiah Livers dealt with a similar recovery process at the University of Michigan, suffering a stress reaction in his right foot during the Big Ten Tournament as a senior. He wound up missing the rest of the season and requiring a surgery that sidelined him for nearly another whole calendar year. The pair related heavily to one another over shared experience and their player-coach relationship has blossomed from there.

Livers could tell immediately that Donaldson was a former player, as her skill level was evident in how she carried herself and handled a ball. He picked up on her basketball IQ and passion for the game during their initial few conversations, and saw her dedication to the craft through her willingness and availability to help any and every player get work in at the practice gym.

“She sounds like a coach, but it’s more like talking player to player,” says Livers. “You can hear it in her voice with what she’s telling you that she’s seen it before as a player, during her time in the league, or just life in general.”

Building that trust and respect with a professional athlete, someone that’s put countless hours into their craft to become one of the few hundred best in the world, is no simple task. To be a successful coach at the NBA level, you have to be able to create that bond with 15-plus players, who all come from different backgrounds, and Donaldson’s ability to do just that has impressed her boss.

“If you’re from the suburbs, the inner city, doesn’t matter if you’re from the moon, she can relate to anybody,” Casey says.

On top of her player development work, Donaldson’s data background gets put to work in the role of director of coaching analytics, an essential bridge between the coaching staff and the data provided from the team’s analytics department. She’s routinely the go-to if another member of the staff has any sort of question about game preparation and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of an opponent. It also means she’s in charge of challenges in-game for the Pistons, so when Casey looks back to the bench after a questionable call, he’s looking at Donaldson to get her read on the situation, while often pleading his case to use the challenge.

“She’s right 99 percent of the time,” says Casey, before laughing that she’s always telling him, “No coach, we can’t challenge all this.”

Numbers come easy to Donaldson, but what makes her stand out is how she blends that knowledge with her aforementioned relatability. During meetings and film sessions when giving a presentation or breaking down a player’s shooting variance with them, she makes information digestible for each individual. If she has a data heavy report, she’ll mix in film, the basketball language of an NBA player or coach, to present it in a way that applies the data rather than just showing them the numbers.

“She puts it out there with the right temperament and the right way,” says Casey. “That’s so important and something the coaching staff has to have. She has no agenda, she just wants to get it right.”

Casey details that that’s not always the case, and it was a significant reason for why he sought out Donaldson in the offseason when he had an opening on his staff. She was just getting started in Toronto near the end of Casey’s tenure, but he had an appreciation for how she worked and connected with players during the time they were both there.

Developing a holistic human being isn’t part of Donaldson’s job description, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s baked into what she brings to the occupation with with her positive demeanor and presence, something Livers highlights when running through their work together on the court.

“She’s a cool person,” Livers says. “She’s so bright; when she walks into a gym, she’s not bringing that vampire negative energy. We’re an organization trying to restore and build on things. She just loves being here and I know we’ll be friends even if we’re not on the same team.”

That same attitude led made rookie Jaden Ivey gravitate to her, and has led to them developing a unique bond. Ivey’s mother, Niele, is the head coach of Notre Dame’s women’s team, a job she took after a stint in the NBA as an assistant with the Memphis Grizzlies.

“We’ve been working together since she first got the job here,” Ivey says. “Seeing my mom coach with the Grizzlies and the impact she had on players there, I wanted her in my circle. She’s been a great coach for me to listen to, someone who’s been to the Finals and that whole experience…I try to just learn from her everyday.”

Donaldson began her career a pass-first player at UNI before her developing into a knockdown shooter her final season after losing some of the shift that made her a dynamic ball-handler due to her injuries. Ivey credits her for the work they put in together in the practice facility on his shooting, continuing to rep out the footwork, follow through, and shot preparation to help with consistency

Most of the work of skill development is done in the offseason; in-season is about maintaining form. That’s Donaldson and Ivey’s day-to-day, but it’s the conversations they have outside hoops that Ivey cherishes and appreciates most.

“She cares not just about the basketball part, but the mental. She cares about the person more than anything, and I knew that from day one, just her character and how she carries herself,” says Ivey. “Of course we talk about the games, but anything off the court, I can go to her and talk about how I’m feeling throughout my day. Once basketball is all said and done, relationships are what you carry and hold onto. It’s a relationship that I can forever build on with her…she’s a great friend, and a great coach.”

Pistons assistant and former NBA player, Keith Bogans, has clicked with Donaldson from day one, much like Ivey. Her confidence in the gym or with a ball in her hands stands out, as you know she’s a former hooper immediately. They talk and see the game in similar ways.

Bogans was known for his shooting during his playing days, and can always be seen getting shots up when practice isn’t ongoing. Donaldson’s the same. After a few days of seeing one another shooting around in the gym, Bogans challenged her to best out of three, and she nailed three straight.

“Ohhh she can shoot,” says Bogans before laughing.

It’s become a routine competition between the two. If there’s any sort of break or free time on the court, Donaldson’s getting out to the corner and telling Bogans “best of 5.”

During pregame on the road in Washington, the duo started shooting back and forth without thinking. Donaldson went first, sinking four of five, and the crowd at Capital One Arena recognized what was happening, steadily cheering more and more with each made shot. Then Bogans was up, and seemingly the whole crowd was watching them, a game before the game.

“When I tell you, man that was more pressure than I’d felt in a long time. I told myself ‘Keith, you can only miss one,’ and luckily I ended up tying her, but I’m telling you, half the arena was cheering for her,” says Bogans.

Donaldson’s reputation is growing around the Pistons facility. Livers hasn’t challenged her yet, but he thinks it might finally be time to.

“I can’t have her walking around thinking she’s the best shooter on the team,” says Livers with a laugh.

At 29, Donaldson is still one of the younger assistant coaches in the league. She’s already accrued a wealth of experience, traveling off of the beaten path to test different waters and find new ways to learn and impact the game. Casey sees the growth she’s made since they first crossed paths in Toronto. Right now, he’s just pleased she’s on his team, but he sees a bright future for her in the league.

Donaldson is likewise happy to have found a comfortable home in Detroit, one where her various experiences can help impact and grow the talent of a young team, while she builds here coaching career alongside them.

Amanda Bynes’ family reportedly won’t be seeking another conservatorship after her recent mental health scare.

According to a source close to the family who spoke with TMZ, Lynn and Rick Bynes are “concerned” about their daughter following her “psychotic episode” over the weekend but they’re not considering any form of conservatorship at this time. Bynes — who was scheduled to attend a 1990s-themed convention in Connecticut with her former Nickelodeon co-stars — made headlines after TMZ reported she flagged down a car for help while roaming the streets of Los Angeles unclothed on Sunday morning. Bynes told the driver of the car she was “coming down from a psychotic episode” and called 911 for herself during the incident. She was placed on a 5150 psych hold, which normally lasts for 72 hours.

Her parents are reportedly alarmed by her behavior, but they’re viewing the incident as an anomaly, considering how well Bynes has been doing since her previous conservatorship ended a year ago. Bynes has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder but, until recently, she’d been taking medication and attending cosmetology school. She split with her fiance, Paul Michael, in July 2022 and though the pair have remained friends, Michael told TMZ that Bynes was “off her meds” in the weeks leading up to this most recent incident.

Another source told NBC News that Bynes hasn’t been in contact with her parents for a while now, but despite this, her family reportedly isn’t considering taking legal action until they know more about her mental state.

(Via TMZ & NBC)

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

On “Muso Kuso” from his new, posthumous album Keed Talk To ‘Em 2, Atlanta rapper Lil Keed sounds suspiciously like his mentor Young Thug. From the guttural, yowling flow he affects alongside guest rapper Nav, to the nasal, high-pitched whine he tacks onto the ends of his bars, he near-perfectly duplicates the YSL impresario’s most distinctive vocal traits. Normally, this kind of thing might not even be notable for a trap rapper operating under the banner of an older, more experienced contemporary.

But just two tracks earlier, Keed appeared to be set on channeling the more brusque, blunt-ended style of trap rap pioneers like Jeezy and Yung Joc. On “Go See,” the album’s blustering, boisterous intro, Keed sounds like he stepped out of a time machine freshly arrived from a decade earlier. And on “Bags To The Sky,” the bridge between the two tracks, he’s a SoundCloud rapper, floating along on a cotton candy beat as he delivers a signature chirpy chant of a hook, giving his take on the briefly dominant sound of the late 2010s.

These three tracks perfectly encapsulate and preface a project that displays all of Keed’s fascinating, chameleonic versatility, his way of refusing to settle into one recognizable style for an entire project. The second installment of his Keed Talk To ‘Em series – and unfortunately, the last – is as freewheeling and loose as its title suggests. Here is a rapper at play, trying out and discarding new styles as he sees fit, showing off, and getting down. It’s perhaps a glimpse behind the scenes of the album recording process that circumstances forced into being an album itself.

You often hear rappers talk about recording hundreds of songs in the course of creating a new project, then having to whittle that daunting number down to a playlist that could reasonably be finished in an hour or on the average commute. And while many of those sketches never see the light of day – barring the leaks that have become increasingly common in the digital era as hard drives go missing and hackers waylay file exchanges – this is what often takes place in those sessions: Play.

In the 50 years since rap was first recorded for mass consumption, dozens of unique approaches have been developed, copied, modified, and evolved from the relatively straightforward rhyme schemes of old. And rap has also slowly absorbed traits of outside genres as it incorporated new technologies and production styles that allowed for greater experimentation. The landscape is truly sprawling, and oftentimes, an artist wants to try out all those toys in the toy box before settling on the one or two that will come to define the sound of a song, album, or catalog.

The time to do this is mostly behind closed doors. Hip-hop is as much a branding exercise as it is a musical genre; the most successful artists have clearly defined, easily recognizable cadences, vocal tones, beat choices, and even ad-libs. You just know when you’re hearing a Jay-Z verse – even a verse that was merely penned by him and performed by someone else – or an Eminem screed or a sermon by Pastor Future. And as much as that’s how artists build their legacies and set the foundation for long careers, any veteran artist can also tell you, it gets boring.

This is why someone like Common does an album like Electric Circus or Kanye West drops 808s & Heartbreak. However, the reception for such experimentation can vary wildly – just look at the two examples mentioned above. So, for many artists, there’s more benefit in experimenting out of the spotlight, fine-tuning any planned musical shifts, and only gradually showing off that versatility in the interest of slowly evolving into a different kind of artist or sharing a different side of themselves.

Lil Keed had two great advantages going for him in that respect. The first was timing; he had the good fortune to come into his own as a rapper just when streaming and the internet have been eroding the barriers between subgenres of rap. Taking it even further, because so many young rappers are developing their craft in the spotlight as a result of SoundCloud, Instagram, and song leaks, fans are much more receptive to big musical shifts. The other great advantage Keed had was being signed to one of the more nurturing artistic environments in the music business today.

Young Thug, who once paid Lil Baby an impressive sum to give up trapping and stick to rapping, allowed Keed to try things. You could just about hear the support he was being given on projects like Long Live Mexico and his Trapped On Cleveland mixtapes. As much as Keed operated in the mode of modern trap, he never felt restricted. He didn’t need to sound like Thug or Lil Baby or Young Scooter or any of his influences. He just did, bouncing from track to track employing whichever flow felt right on the beat. It makes sense; this is what Young Thug always did, so of course, he’d allow his artists similar freedom (the freedom he was often criticized for enjoying at a similar phase of his own career).

Keed is able to take this even further, veering dangerously close to boom-bap traditionalism on “Lost My Trust” with Cordae, getting introspective on “Can’t Fall Victim” and “Self Employed,” and even taking a gospel-R&B tack on album closer “Thank You Lord.” Keed stood out because he was so unconstrained by the boundaries that usually box in other rappers. He could do anything, so he did. It’s a shame that the world was deprived of the opportunity to see what he would do given the tools and toys that will undoubtedly continue to be added to hip-hop’s ever-growing repertoire of styles, sounds, and new technology.

Keed Talk To ‘Em 2is out now via YSL and 300 Entertainment.

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

Lollapalooza is returning to Grant Park in Chicago on August 3-6, and as usual, the lineup is a sprawling collection of the biggest names in music. This year’s headliners include Kendrick Lamar, Billie Eilish, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Odesza, Lana Del Rey, Karol G, The 1975, and Tomorrow X Together. The presale begins on March 23 (Thursday) at 10 am CT. A wider sale is planned to follow. You can get more information at http://lollapalooza.com.

Uproxx’s Carolyn Droke called the 2022 edition of the long-running festival “a big city music festival done right,” calling attention to the diversity of genres and its “outstanding performances accompanied by breathtaking city skyline views.” This year’s fest is likely to stick to that tradition thanks to the inclusion of veteran performers like Fred Again…, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Carly Rae Jepsen, Diplo, Rina Sawayama, and the genre-bending Lil Yachty. There’s that diversity again. You can see a complete list of the performers for Lollapalooza 2023 below.

Lollapalooza is rapidly approaching its 20th anniversary, making it one of the longest-running big festivals in the world. While it has expanded to include events in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paris, and Sweden, the main festival in Chicago remains the biggest draw, with the 2022 festival bringing in nearly 400,000 concertgoers to Grant Park.

Ed Sheeran announced his new album –, or Subtract, earlier this month. He revealed that Aaron Dessner of The National helped him a great deal in the making of the record; Dessner wrote on Instagram that they “finished over 30 songs together in a week.” Only about half made the LP.

In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Sheeran expanded on what was cut. Writer Brian Hiatt explained that a whole new album will be unveiled, made up of that material. Read what Hiatt wrote below.

“He went on to write an entirely separate second album with Dessner. He’s already mixing that one, though he’s not sure when it will come out; he wants to give – a chance to breathe. ‘I have no goals for the record,’ he says. ‘I just want to put it out.’”

It looks like that’s not the only music Sheeran cut from Subtract. The singer shared, “I’ve got loads and loads and loads of sh*t,” he told the publication. “I wrote 25 songs the week I wrote ‘Shape of You,’ ” he continued, estimating that it accumulated to “years’ worth of releases.” “Who’s to say at what point creativity stops and you can’t write any more songs? At least there’s enough banked up.”

Hiatt added more context about this unreleased material, divulging that J Balvin was a key collaborator as well.

“There is, as it turns out, yet another completed album waiting in the wings, a collaboration with reggaeton superstar J Balvin. They knocked the whole thing out last year, after Sheeran randomly encountered Balvin (José, he calls him) in a hotel gym a couple of years earlier. The album is all ready to go, complete with already-shot videos, but again, with no release date in sight.”

– (Subtract) is out 5/5 via Atlantic. Find more information here.

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

While Taylor Swift is only two shows into her already-massive The Eras Tour, after playing Glendale’s State Farm Stadium, it’s already produced some truly peak TikTok videos.

Some include close-up views from floor seats of Swift’s takes of “Enchanted” and “My Tears Ricochet,” which showcase her changing outfits and some haunting dances from backup performers.

Another focused on a security guard at State Farm Stadium, who had been getting really into the music of Swift’s set. Who could blame her?

Then, there was the focus of Swift’s “Vigilante Sh*t” choreography, which had fans going wild as she uses a chair routine straight out of Chicago’s “Cell Block Tango.” One fan brought up that her mom, Andrea, had thought back in 2009 that some of Swift’s moves were a little questionable if young fans were in the audience.

A few more fans gathered for a hilarious video that found them casually tossing in Swift’s song titles into the conversation before playing the song. “What are the primary colors again?” one asked. “I think blue, yellow, red,” another in the group answered as the instrumental to “Red” started.

Swift is also gearing up for her next two nights at Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium this weekend.

Check out some more of our favorite TikToks tied to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour.

Is Donald Trump going to be arrested today? The scandal-plagued former president seems pretty sure of it (what a fine way to spend Taco Bowl Tuesday), and he’s calling on his MAGA converts to keep him out of jail.

Insider acquired an email sent by Team Trump to his millions of supporters (and millions more who keep forgetting to click the unsubscribe button). “They’re trying to intimidate YOU and cancel out YOUR vote!” it reads. “Which is why the Trump for President 2024 campaign is compiling millions and millions of petition signatures from Americans like you CONDEMNING these threats of a possible arrest.” It also called on “74 million patriots” to sign the petition — and fork over some dough, too.

Upon clicking the petition link in the message, recipients are taken to a page asking for donations to “help DEFEND our America First movement during these dark times.” The message says supporters can donate any amount, but suggests sums like $500, $1,000, and $3,300.

This isn’t the first time that Trump has exploited his followers to raise money. Last year, following the death of his ex-wife Ivana Trump, he released a statement about her that included a “DONATE TO SAVE AMERICA” button.

Trump also has been “using rumors of his indictment to raise funds on his social media platform, Truth Social,” according to Insider. “He said supporters shouldn’t send him anything if they are ‘doing poorly,’ but told them to ‘send your contribution’ if they are” making KFC buffet money.

Stay tuned! It’s going to be an interesting week.

(Via Insider)

Chris Hemsworth and Elsa Pataky recently celebrated their twin sons’ birthdays, and the couple commemorated the moment with what is pretty clearly a sweet, innocent prank. In a photo shared to Instagram by the Thor star, Pataky can be seen playfully smashing one of her son’s faces into a chocolate cake as the whole family looks on and/or adds a helping hand.

“Happy 9th birthday to my two little men!” Hemsworth wrote in the caption. “Only one way to eat cake in this house and that’s to have mum slam your head into it face first!! ‘Hey mum I don’t like chocolate cake I prefer vanilla’ ‘oh really son, what about now?’”

The photo is about as wholesome of a family photo as it gets, but of course, the internet had to be the internet. Hemsworth and Pataky actually started getting backlash in the comments from fans who clearly hate joy and laughter.

Via Page Six:

“Why people smash their kid’s face in the cake is above my understanding but whatever,” one critic wrote in the comment section.

“Why do people think this is funny?” another wrote, before a third added, “It’s so violent.”

“In my country [this is] done, but it’s very poorly [looked upon] because several accidents have already happened,” a fourth chimed in.

Fortunately, other fans began pushing back and defending the playful moment.

“Violent? It’s a bit of play,” one fan wrote. Another added, “Just a bit of basic humor….. they look like they are having a good time together.”

Meanwhile, another comment (via People) was here for Hemsworth slipping into full on Dad mode.

“That is a proud dad stance right there,” a fan wrote about the Marvel star looking approvingly at the birthday chaos unfolding.

(Via Page Six, People)

The Boys viewers tend to be an enthused bunch. This can work for and against the show, and its stars, and its audience at large. And of course, the negative stuff tends to make more headlines, like when angry trolls review-bombed the second season because of the show’s new weekly rollout. Or when the far-right contingent apparently went into a full meltdown when they realized that Homelander is a villain. Or when misogynists go haywire on the show’s female stars, including Erin Moriarty.

Now, Karl Urban heard about something ugly. Urban didn’t go into specifics, mind you, but he did warn a certain troll that he would get specific if a situation continued.

“it’s come to my attention that a toxic fan is engaged in persistent cyber bullying,” the man who embodies Billy Butcher wrote on Twitter. “I see you . STOP ! If you don’t , the whole WORLD will soon see you and know you for the cruel & wicked racist that you are . Your dumb German ass will get NUKED from orbit .”

You heard what the man said, and you’ve seen his work. No one should mess with Karl Urban.

And if you needed a little sunshine as an antidote, here’s a sentiment from Antony Starr, who is (allegedly!) not at all like Homelander. “Everyone is struggling with something,” Starr tweeted. “Everyone. You’re not alone. And if you haven’t heard it today,- you’re amazing.”

In addition to his upcoming fifth studio album, —, as well as an upcoming Disney+ documentary called The Sum Of It All, Ed Sheeran has tons of surprises on the way. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Sheeran revealed he has a song on the soundtrack for the new season of Ted Lasso.

“Do you want to hear it?” he asked the Rolling Stone reporter. “Because it’s f*cking good.”

He previewed the song for the reporter, who recalled some of the lyrics in the extensive profile.

“We’ll rise from the ashes and write in stars with our names,” he reportedly sings on the upcoming song. “The joy was worth the pain / Love’s the beautiful game.”

Sheeran first revealed he was approached to write and record a song for Ted Lasso back in October of 2021, during an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show.

While we don’t yet have a title for the upcoming Ted Lasso song, Sheeran’s new single, “Eyes Closed” arrives this Friday, March 24. His fifth studio album, —, will arrive later in the spring.

&mdash is out 5/5 via Atlantic. Find more information here.

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