Save the date. The Magic Man is coming.

After making stops in Asia and Europe last year, the MAGIC MAN World Tour is finally making its way to North America this spring. Making the initial announcement on his social channels today (January 13), multi-talented pop icon Jackson Wang will bring the tour to six North American cities — four in the US and two in Canada.

The tour will kick off in Los Angeles, California’s Shrine Auditorium on April 16 and will make its way east then conclude in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclay’s Center. Pre-sale for tickets begins next Wednesday, January 18, and will open to the public on Friday, January 20. For more information and updates, visit the tour’s official site.

In addition to his tour announcement, it was revealed Jackson Wang (as well as fellow 88rising artists DPR Live and DPR Ian) will bring the MAGIC MAN show to the desert at Coachella. Scheduled to perform on the Sunday lineup (April 16 and 23) of the annual music and arts festival, you can catch a glimpse of what Jackson Wang’s concert will look like at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California ahead of Frank Ocean’s set. This comes after Jackson made history as the first Chinese soloist to perform at Coachella as part of 88rising’s Head in the Clouds Forever set last year.

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

The best new hip-hop this week column returns in 2023 after taking a couple of weeks off for the holidays. Although new releases were relatively sparse for the past couple of weeks, there were new projects from New York rapper MIKE, Houston mainstay Sauce Walka, and Baton Rouge menace to society YoungBoy Never Broke Again, as well as the latest installment in French Montana’s Coke Boys mixtape series (the release party for which unexpectedly turned tragic).

But as the year gets started in earnest, the hip-hop machine picked up steam, bringing a respectable crop of new releases from the likes of both rising rappers like BabyTron and Zelooperz and veterans like 03 Greedo and Skyzoo. Meanwhile, new singles popped up from all corners of the hip-hop map, with new tracks from the likes of Moneybagg Yo and GloRilla, Black Thought, Logic, Offset, and Armani White.

Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending January 13, 2023.

Albums/EPs/Mixtapes

03 Greedo x Mike Free — Free 03

03 free! The formerly incarcerated Watts native celebrated his impending release from prison with what is presumably the last of his pre-prison material, which features collaborations with BlueBucksClan and OhGeesy. Also featured is an unexpectedly poignant team-up between Greedo and his frequent partner-in-rhyme Drakeo The Ruler, who also outlasted an egregious sentence only to meet his untimely end less than a year later.

BabyTron — Bin Reaper 3: New Testament

The Detroit punchline pundit is quickly becoming one of the burgeoning Michigan scene’s most prolific producers — and one of its most provocative. If you’ve been following BabyTron — which you have been, if you’re a regular reader of this column — you know what to expect: More off-kilter humor and off-the-cuff sports references in service of proving he’s flashier than your favorites.

Skyzoo x The Other Guys — The Mind of A Saint

Brooklyn’s unofficial poet laureate seriously impressed with his last release, 2021’s All The Brilliant Things, and picks up right where he left off with his latest. Written from the perspective of Snowfall‘s conflicted protagonist Franklin Saint, Skyzoo’s new project is yet another intricate portrait of a figure he knows all too well, a player in a system he didn’t have a hand in creating but is willing to risk everything to master.

ZelooperZ — Might Not Make It

Fresh off his tour with Atlanta funnyman Zack Fox, the Bruiser Brigade member continues his crusade to make his name one of the first fans think of when the phrase “most unique rappers” gets tossed around. The five-song EP tries a bunch of new, interesting, unusual things sonically and your tolerance for them may hinge upon how badly you want hip-hop to move on from its current 808 obsession, but it’s hard to deny that at least it’s compelling stuff.

Singles/Videos

Buddy & Kent Jamz — “House Party”

The remake of the ’90s hip-hop cinematic classic hits theaters this week and with it, the soundtrack comes to streaming. Naturally, one of rap’s top modern dynamic duos makes for a perfect pairing on the title track, backed by the West Coast’s finest producer, the Inland Empire’s own Hit-Boy.

Fly Anakin — “Blicky Bop”

Fly Ani is a year removed from his warmly-received “debut” album Frank and is already plotting his next move — which, in this case, is a pair of EPs. Skinemaxxx will come with a side A and B, with the former dropping in April. The trippy “Blicky Bop” is the first offering.

G Herbo — “Shaderoom”

Herb is still promoting his 2022 double album Survivor’s Remorse, doing so this week with an uptempo selection whose video finds him enjoying the finer things in life. Just because he’s feeling the effects of the album’s title doesn’t mean he can’t have a little fun.

Jadakiss & Swizz Beats — “Hustle, Repeat”

Season 3 of Godfather Of Harlem returns to Epix this week, bringing a new soundtrack headed by Jadakiss, who’s well-versed in the appropriate subject matter. Swizz Beats gets some production backup from Avenue Beatz and Jada spits his usual brick-hard bars.

Westside Gunn, Rome Streetz, & Stove God Cooks — “BDP”

Gunn has been spending his past couple of projects setting up the next generation of talent from Griselda, and his most recent one, 10, is no exception. “BDP,” a standout from the project, showcases the lyrical talents of rising stars Rome Streetz and Stove God while bossman holds down the hook.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

There were a lot of no-shows at the Golden Globes this week, though some people had pretty good reasons. But when Amanda Seyfried didn’t show up to accept her award for her performance in The Dropout, the given reason was that she was “working on a musical,” and nothing more, which is the biggest cliffhanger you could ever offer to a room full of actors, honestly.

Seyfried then took to Instagram to explain, without really explaining: “It is a true honor to have been a part of [the Golden Globes], and I had to miss it because I am working on something that is magic, and it’s a musical, so I’m finally getting to do something that I’ve never really done.”

Naturally, when you think of the words “magic,” “Amanda Seyfried,” and “musical,” it wouldn’t be so absurd to hope that there is a Mamma Mia! threequel on the way. And that’s what everyone did think, quite frankly, because it would make sense. But it was revealed today that Seyfriend and Evan Rachel Wood are working on something together, though it doesn’t take place in the sparkling blue waters of Greece.

The duo is reportedly working on a musical based on Thelma & Louise. The film’s original screenwriter, Callie Khouri, is also on board, along with singer/songwriter Neko Case.

Thelma & Louise is a 1991 road trip comedy/drama starring Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon as two friends who take a weekend road trip in order to escape their lives but end up involved in some pretty heavy situations and have to stick together to see it through. There definitely is some magic here, though the musical part is a little daunting. If anyone can do it, a Mamma Mia! alum can. Or maybe ABBA.

(Via Variety)

Nine-year-old Molly Sampson has been searching for teeth in the water since before she could walk. In her young life, she’s found more than 400 shark teeth, some so tiny it takes a magnifying glass to identify them, and the largest measuring an inch or two—until now.

Molly’s father, Bruce, grew up on the bay in Calvert County, Maryland, and has been hunting fossils at Scientists Cliffs since he was a small child. Bruce has dreamed for decades of finding a “meg”—a large tooth from a megalodon, a massive prehistoric shark longer than a bus, which scientists estimate could have eaten a killer whale in five bites.

Sometimes our dreams end up coming true through our children—and that’s just what happened when the Sampson family went fossil hunting on Christmas Day, 2022.

Molly woke up that morning eager to try out her new insulated chest waders—pretty much the only thing she and her older sister Natalie really wanted for Christmas, according to their mother—so she could go search for shark teeth in the bay with her dad and sister. It’s something the family has done countless times, but something about this outing was different.

“I’m looking for a meg!” Molly declared in the car on their way to the cliffs.

The three of them hit the water in 10-degree wind chills, spreading out to search in their own areas. And within 20 minutes, Molly emerged with a shriek—and a tooth the size of her hand. “Look what I found!” she screamed.

Molly’s mom, Alicia, says it’s as if she spoke the “meg” into existence that morning.

“In her head, she kept asking herself, ‘Am I dreaming?'” Alicia tells Upworthy. “She didn’t think it was real. She kept saying she couldn’t believe it.”

Bruce snapped a photo of Molly and her amazing discovery and sent it to Alicia, who had stayed home to avoid the cold weather. (A choice she says she regretted after seeing the smile on her daughter’s face as she held her huge find.)

Molly told her mom she had to dive in and get her arms wet to reach the 5-inch tooth, but it was worth it.

It’s rare to find such a treasure, even for avid fossil hunters. Megalodon literally means “giant tooth” and fossils that have been found so far have been dated from approximately 23 million to 2.6 million years ago.

Stephen Godfrey, curator of paleontology at the Calvert Marine Museum, told CBS News that the tooth was from the left side of a megalodon’s upper jaw and that the creature with this tooth would have been between 45 and 50 feet long—about the length of a humpback whale.

Calvert Marine Museum shared on Facebook that Molly had brought her tooth to the museum’s paleontology department, but she gets to keep it in her own collection at home.

“My husband is going to build a shadow box for her so she can display it safely,” says Alicia. “I am sure she will always keep this tooth. To her—and to us—it is priceless. The joy and excitement it has brought her could never be bought.”

Molly has said she’d like to dig for fossils when she grows up, and she’s certainly getting a strong head start in that department. She and Natalie have even started their own “Fossil Girls” Instagram page to share their love of fossil hunting.

Congratulations, kiddo, on your incredible find. Happy hunting, Sampson family!

According to PETA’s website, “When she wasn’t being hauled around by a leash and forced to perform for human amusement, [Lisa Marie] was often relegated to a tiny cage in a cramped basement and made to wear a collar with a padlock on it.”

After learning about chimp Lisa Marie’s plight, OG Lisa Marie personally wrote to the chimpanzee’s owners to ask them to free her. Though that plea never got a response, the overall mission was successful—Lisa Marie was freed and taken home to a new family.

And Presley didn’t stop there. Lisa Lange, senior vice president of PETA, shared, “Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, when shelters were in desperate need of foster families, Lisa Marie and her twin daughters set a wonderful example by opening their home and hearts to two dogs. Though the ‘Lights Out’ singer has passed away, her bright vision for animals will continue to inspire all of us at PETA,” she wrote.

Presley’s family made the announcement of her passing only a few hours after she was rushed to the hospital due to a cardiac arrest. She was 54.

Her mother Priscilla Presley wrote in a statement, “It is with a heavy heart that I must share the devastating news that my beautiful daughter Lisa Marie has left us. She was the most passionate, strong and loving woman I have ever known.”

We never know how much time we have on this planet. But time spent trying to make the world a better place for those we share it with is never a waste. Lisa Marie left behind a legacy of great work and great deeds.

There’s great news from the war on cancer. A new report from the American Cancer Society shows that the cancer death rate has fallen 33% since 1991. An estimated 3.8 million deaths have been averted due to the decline. The study was based on the most recent data available from 2020.

Currently, the top six causes of death in the U.S. are heart disease, cancer, COVID-19, accidents, stroke and chronic lower respiratory diseases.

“The biggest reason for the decline that started in 1991 was the prevalence of smoking in the United States started going down in 1965,” said Dr. Otis Brawley, an oncology professor at Johns Hopkins University and former chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, according to CNN. “Now, in certain diseases, our ability to treat has improved, and there are some people who are not dying because of treatment.”

Over the past six decades, the prevalence of smoking in the U.S. has gone down dramatically. In 1965, 42% of Americans smoked cigarettes; in 2019 it was just 14%. Cigarette smoking is known to cause lung, bladder and pancreatic cancers.

Another big reason for the drop in cancer mortality has been the development of the HPV vaccine. There was a 65% drop in cervical cancers in women in their 20s between 2012 to 2019. HPV infections are a leading cause of cervical cancers.

“There are other cancers that are HPV-related – whether that’s head and neck cancers or anal cancers – so there’s optimism this will have importance beyond this,” Dr. William Dahut, the American Cancer Society’s chief scientific officer said.

Since 1991 there has also been a decrease in mortality for leukemia, melanoma and kidney cancer.

The cancers that now have the highest survival rates are thyroid (98%), prostate (97%) and melanoma (94%). The deadliest form of cancer is pancreatic cancer, which has a 12% survival rate.

“The report showing the U.S. has cut cancer deaths by one-third over the last 30 years is great progress, which we’ve achieved through driving smoking rates down, improving early detection, and delivering better treatments for many cancers. It means millions of American families have been spared the immeasurable loss of a loved one,” White House Cancer Moonshot Coordinator Dr. Danielle Carnival said in a statement.

u201cThe rate of people dying from cancer in the United States has continuously declined over the past three decades, according to a new report from the American Cancer Society. https://t.co/bketX4qFWBu201d

— CNN Breaking News (@CNN Breaking News)
1673536211

“The report also underscores that there’s more work to do to save more lives,” she continued. “President Biden’s vision for ending cancer as we know it is building on the progress we’ve made with an all-hands-on-deck effort to develop new ways to prevent, detect, and treat cancer – and ensure that the tools we have and those we develop along the way reach all Americans.”

The good news on the cancer front comes as there appears to be a breakthrough in the treatment and prevention of the disease on the horizon. There are multiple vaccines in the works that use the same mRNA technology behind the highly successful COVID-19 vaccines that could be used to prevent and treat cancer.

Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci, the co-founders of BioNTech, the German firm that partnered with Pfizer to manufacture a revolutionary mRNA COVID vaccine, told The Guardian they believe that cancer vaccines based on mRNA technology might be ready to be used in patients “before 2030.”

Have you ever seen a beaver build a “dam” out of stuffed animals and Christmas decorations? How about someone singing “Baby Got Back” opera-style?

This week’s 10 things list is a veritable feast of unusual delights. In addition to the indoor beaver dam and operatic “Baby Got Back,” we have a quick-witted “molice” (mom police) officer, a diner-owning toddler who serves broccoli to patrons who order cookies, and a hilarious mix-up between a kid named Jesús and the actual biblical Jesus.

We love to laugh here at Upworthy, but we also like to cry happy tears. It wouldn’t be a genuine roundup of joy without a few heart-tuggers in there. We’ve got you covered on all joy fronts. (Get ready to giggle, but grab a tissue or two as well is what I’m saying.)

Without further ado, please enjoy these 10 things that made us smile this week.

1. Mom’s hilarious ‘molice’ skits have parents everywhere nodding and chuckling.

@bmackwrites

Episode 2: Teen won’t clean room #molice #bmackwrites

Her vest. The face roller. That giggle at the end. And there’s more where this came from. See more of Bridgett Mack’s “molice” videos here.

2. Wee one painting her mom’s nails does a spot-on Leslie Jordan impression.

@addytok2022

She tried her best honey 😂 #fyp #fypage #trending

It’s unintentional, surely, but it’s like hearing Leslie Jordan being channeled through a toddler. Read more about Addy and her family here.

3. Watch Sawyer the rescue beaver meticulously build a ‘dam’ in her rehabber’s hallway.

Marine mammal researcher Dr. Holley Muraco shared with us how Sawyer came to live with her and it’s a fascinating look into beaver rehabilitation. Learn all about Sawyer and her fellow rescue beavers, Huck and Finn (yes, really!) here.

4. A mom got confused by a ‘birthday party for Jesus’ invitation and it’s a hilarious mix-up.

@tashasalyer

“Are you Jésus’ mom?” “I don’t even know who Jésus is.” Holy moly, too funny. Read the full story here.

5. A son gets a first look at his mom before he walks her down the aisle, and here’s where the tissues come in.

See on Instagram

“I’m so happy for you.” Oof. How sweet is that kiddo?

6. Two-year-old runs her diner like a middle-aged woman who tolerates no nonsense.

@saruh2themax

I got put on a strict diet due to my audacity. #willowpenelope #willowsdiner #cute #funnytoddler

“Willow’s Diner” has become an incredibly popular TikTok series and you can see why with those facial expressions and toddler unpredictability. Check out more Willow’s Diner videos here.

7. Jason Derulo sings “Baby Got Back” opera-style and nails it.

Derulo is a pop singer, but one who has been classically trained and it shows. That vibrato on “spruuuuuuung”? Come on. Read the full story here.

8. Kid belts out every word of song from new ‘Matilda’ film and Dad’s reaction is too relatable.

u201cWe love to see the rise of a new theater kid. Protect him.u201d

— Ayanna P. (@Ayanna P.)
1673269370

Math facts woes aside, Nathan appears to have a bright musical theater future ahead of him. Another video of him singing a “Hamilton” song went viral with this one and got the attention of Leslie Odom Jr. himself. Read the full story here.

9. Eight-year-old surprises his beloved auntie with his portrait painting of her at an art show.

See on Instagram

Another good cry here. What a sweetheart and Auntie Steph’s reaction is so pure. Love, love, love.

10. Swipe through these ‘wholesome secrets’ and see if they inspire some quiet acts of kindness.

See on Instagram

Some of the greatest acts of human kindness are the ones we never see. In an age where everyone shares everything on social media, isn’t it heartwarming to hear about people being helpful behind the scenes, just for the good of it?

Hope that brought you some joy!

If you want these roundups sent straight to your inbox each week, sign up for our free newsletter, The Upworthiest, here.

With M3GAN being a surprise box office hit, and a sequel already in early development, the obvious question is how soon can audiences stream her creepy dancing murder doll ways from the comfort (and safety) of their own homes. Well, good news on that front. M3GAN will reportedly be available for VOD rental or purchase starting January 24.

As for when it will hit Peacock, that’s a little more murky. According to Polygon, if M3GAN follows in the footsteps of other Universal releases, it should arrive on the streaming platform within the next month:

A subscription streaming premiere date for M3GAN has yet to be announced. However, with the film being distributed by Universal Pictures, M3GAN will almost certainly make its streaming debut on Peacock, the Comcast-owned streaming service. Based on previous Universal releases like Ambulance, The Northman, and Nope, we can estimate that M3GAN is likely to land on Peacock sometime in February.

Polygon also notes that there appears to be a pipeline for Universal movies making the jump to Amazon Prime Video after spending a few months on Peacock. That would make M3GAN available for streaming on Prime sometime this summer.

In the meantime, there has already been talk of an unrated cut of M3GAN where America’s favorite little killbot has a much more substantial body cut that doesn’t need to be trimmed to score a PG-13 rating. As for whether that cut will be available in theaters, streaming, or physical release hasn’t been revealed, but writer Akela Cooper said the unrated version is “on the books.”

M3GAN will be available on VOD on January 24.

(Via Polygon)

“I’m going on an adventure!” I screamed to myself. “A weed adventure!”

I’d just nailed down a private ganja farm adventure in the hills of Jamaica. While there I would see marijuana growing and… Pick some? Watch the buds dry? Get stoned as hell? It was all a tad unclear; nonetheless, I was hyped.

Jamaica’s all-inclusive properties were boring to me. I wanted something different. Away from the beaches of Negril. To romp through the green, mountainous hills. So I booked a trip – feeling anything but a loser – ready to explore a more local side of the island (more local than internationally owned resorts, at least. It’s worth noting that there are plenty of locally owned guesthouses in Jamaica.)

Technically speaking, marijuana – ganja, weed, cannabis, etc. – is illegal in Jamaica. It was fully banned and deemed illegal under the 1913 Ganja Law and for over a century was treated as a black-market commodity. Thankfully, world leaders are starting to come to their senses (at least about some things) and cannabis was officially decriminalized in 2015. Jamaican residents can now possess up to two ounces without the worry of a criminal record and cultivate up to five plants without prosecution. It seems like that second clause is pretty open-ended and not as heavily enforced, considering ganja grows aplenty throughout the island and there’s a lot of talk of the “farmers up in the mountains.”

Still, it does seem like there are a few safeguards — I was told little to no information on where this ganja farm was located or where exactly I was headed. “Adds to the mystique!” I thought.

I got picked up at 9 am. My driver, Dennis, arrived in a minivan and I slid into the front passenger seat (the left side, since they drive on the left in Jamaica), and off we went. As we wound our way into the hills, I noticed that most of the land was fenced off for farming. Dennis explained that the first town we came to, Good Hope, currently represents one of the largest farm-based communities throughout the whole island of Jamaica. A local football field sat to the left center of the town, complimenting the houses nestled along the main road.

A few more minutes up Mt. Airy, Dennis slowed down and pulled over. Right behind us was a small bar. To the right was a tall wire metal fence. Dennis called through cupped hands into the hilly fields above the road and a man appeared.

Dennis introduced me to Kurt, who wore a salmon-colored t-shirt and gray shorts. He was a slim man, probably in his 40s, and a man of few words. I was told to follow him, and we started making our way up through dense switchbacks. Having lived in Colorado and Utah for the past three years, I was able to keep up pretty easily. It was the humidity that I wasn’t used to.

With Kurt leading the way, me following behind, and Dennis in the back, we finally arrived at a gate made out of scrap metal. You could already see the marijuana plants peeking out over the wire fencing lining the farm. Then, once Kurt opened the gate, it became sensory overload and I understood the magnitude of the operation.

Thousands of marijuana plants surrounded my field of vision in just about every direction I looked. Not only that, but the smell was… mouthwatering. Even if you don’t smoke weed, it’s hard to not take a little liking to the smell of fresh plants. Here, the plants lived and prospered among the natural terrain of the land. Many of the plants were growing in tires, but some were also growing tall in the natural soil.

We were 120 meters (393 feet) above sea level, there was a plethora of Cretaceous limestone throughout the farm. Believe it or not, the ocean once covered this land, before the island rose out of the sea millions of years ago.

While growing marijuana outside may not be considered optimal conditions in the United States, it is in Jamaica. I was told that this farm is among dozens more throughout the area that grows and cultivates ganja to be sold and dispersed throughout the island. Because of the mineral-rich rocks and soil, the plants prosper and grow here year-round without a problem.

Later, I was told that Mount Airy and Orange Hill – the small town right after the farm – are considered the epicenter of marijuana cultivation in all of Jamaica.

Making sure I watched my footing, I walked through the dense forests of cannabis plants. Huge plants as high as 10 feet hovered over me, while some plants were just starting off as little sprouts. There were families of plants ready to harvest and little wee new buds that were soaking in as much sun and water as possible to thrive.

Because of the close proximity, Kurt told me that almost all of the plants are hybrids, constantly pollinating and replicating almost every day. He couldn’t keep count of how many plants he has.

“I don’t know, maybe a thousand,” he said. “I can’t keep track, honestly. There are dozens that pop up every day.”

I noticed several piles of what looked like fire ash in various locations throughout the farm.

“The plants like to smoke,” Kurt told me with a slight laugh.

He was telling the truth. While marijuana operations in the states may have to adhere to strict growing guidelines and use methodically calculated and researched additives and chemicals in order to get the best-tasting strains, the Jamaicans I met (Kurt in particular) prefer a more natural method: smoking the plants. He explained that exposing marijuana plants to regulated, small amounts of fire smoke yields stronger and more potent plants.

While ganja leaves and aromas took up most of my sensory awareness, some “misplaced” plants also stood tall among the cannabis plantation. A papaya tree and banana tree positioned themselves proudly among their marijuana counterparts, while several hidden Scotch bonnet pepper plants camouflaged themselves in the thick of the ganja growth. Kurt picked some fresh peppers for Dennis to take home. Me on the other hand, I wanted to smoke some of what we just saw and take some of those goodies back with me.

After strolling through this nearly three-decades-old ganja farm, smelling the abundance of Mary Jane against the salty breeze, and seeing and feeling the delicious sticky buds, I’d worked up quite the appetite to smoke.

Soon, the tour was over and it was time to blaze up in the hills of Jamaica. Dennis and I followed Kurt back down the switchbacks and the three of us ended up in Kurt’s little beach bar shack close to where we’d parked. Kurt went into a side shed and pulled out some of the farm’s recently cultivated and dried buds for us to smoke as a trio. At which point Kurt nonchalantly revealed he doesn’t smoke. Dennis said the same.

That left me to take care of business. Kurt took out a little electric coffee grinder and ground a fat bud into a perfect consistency of ground flower. As Dennis rolled some of it up into a joint for me, Kurt packed the rest into a homemade coconut bong.

I felt like Gandolf as I took my first hit, due to the bong’s long mouthpiece. Once I exhaled, I realized immediately that we weren’t in Colorado anymore. The weed was dank. I coughed my way through the smoke as Dennis and Kurt laughed at me. The weed tasted quite good, almost as if the salty air and Caribbean sun had kissed each plant and all of its beautiful buds with some bright citrus flavors.

After three long drags of the coconut bong, I was good to go.

“How is it?” Dennis asked me.

“Irie,” I replied through my coughing. I thought I was a seasoned veteran when I came to smoking, but the Jamaican plants hit me on a whole new level.

Dennis finished rolling the joint, but I couldn’t even smoke it. It would be too much and a waste, considering I was already floating among the hills, I put the joint and leftover bud carefully in my bag.

Having lived in Colorado for several years and naturally surrounding myself with all the weed-smoking hippie friends I could find in all the various cities I’ve lived in, smoking marijuana is nothing new to me. I’ve even bought some pretty terrible weed from a local in downtown London once, which did the job but was nothing similar to that in the United States. Seeing it firsthand in Jamaica, I can understand why ganja is considered the “wisdom weed” by practicing Rastafarians and how it has become a true commodity. The people I met — even non-smokers — respect it in a different way.

There really is a “weed as medicine” dynamic at play that most American smokers seem to have missed. Or at least ignored in favor of getting as high as possible as fast as possible.

Seeing a farm helped me step away from the US’s current commodification of weed. I found something quite special about venturing off into the idyllic land of marijuana plants and seeing where it all really comes from and the real people that make it all happen. Needless to say though, there isn’t really an “official” way to book such a trip. I was able to find a trusted driver who knew Kurt and convinced him to show me – a complete stranger – a tour of his farm. You just have to poke around a little bit to find the people who know these hidden spots and trust that it’ll all work out.

And that’s the point of travel… right? With a thirst for adventure and an intrepid spirit, it can take you to some mighty high places.

Last week, Bonnaroo, Boston Calling, and Coachella kicked off announcements for the spring 2023 festival season. Now it’s New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival’s turn, and the event has big shoes to fill after 2022’s epic return. This year’s event, set to take place between April 28 and May 7, doesn’t look like it will disappoint. Amongst the 5,000 musicians listed to perform at the Fair Grounds Race Course are Ed Sheeran, Lizzo, Mumford & Sons, Santana, and The Lumineers, to name a few of the headliners.

But just as the event’s name highlights, several jazz acts will grace one of the event’s five stages, including Trombone Shorty & Orleans Ave, Rebirth Brass Band, Chistone “Kingfish” Ingram, Dee Dee Bridgewater, and more. Other notable performers include Melissa Etheridge, Jazmine Sullivan, HER, Big Freedia, and Durand Jones.

The festival will also feature several international artists, including La Tribu de Abrante, Plena Libra, Pirulo y la Tribu, Atabal, and more.

In addition to the musical performances, the festival will feature several crafting activities for children and families and a wide array of food trucks for attendees to explore New Orleans’ staple dishes.

Tickets for the New Orleans Jazz Festival 2023 are on sale now. Head here for more information.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.