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The Morning Joe crew tore into congressional GOP leader Kevin McCarthy after he joined a growing list of Republicans who have been hesitant to call out Donald Trump for dining with white supremacist Nick Fuentes. Over the Thanksgiving holiday, Fuentes was the guest of Kanye West, who was already facing backlash for his ever-increasing collection of antisemitic remarks. (Recent reports now claim the entire evening was a “setup” that was orchestrated to teach Trump a lesson about abandoning his base.)

When asked by reporters to “condemn” Trump for having the dinner with Fuentes, McCarthy waffled by condemning the white supremacist, but not Trump. McCarthy continued to assert that Trump didn’t know who Fuentes is, but he had no answer when reporters pointed out that Trump knew all about Kanye and his increased antisemitism.

After the embarrassing display on Tuesday, the Morning Joe crew lit into McCarthy the following day. Via Mediaite:

“Must be awful to go through life the way Kevin McCarthy is, having to stop and think ‘Is the thing I’m about to say going to make Donald Trump mad?’” [Willie] Geist scoffed. “To have no core and have to say something as easy as ‘This guy’s terrible. Donald Trump shouldn’t have done it.’ He has to say ‘This guy’s terrible, but Donald Trump said he didn’t know him.’ Just say he shouldn’t have had the dinner. He can’t do it, and never has.”

Co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski agreed with Geist’s assessment, and the two remained baffled that McCarthy continues to remain loyal to Trump even as he cost the party a “red wave” in the midterm elections.

(Via Mediaite)

While everyone is out there hyping up the potential Freaky Friday sequel, there is one crucial movie that is being left out of the early aughts revival conversation, and that is Mean Girls. The movie helped launched the careers of Amanda Seyfried and Rachel McAdams, while also introducing a new generation of teenagers to the concept of Danny Devito.

The movie inspired a few subpar sequels and a Broadway musical, so it only makes sense that the rest of the cast should reunite in a sequel that follows the girls at their 20th high school reunion. Is Aaron Samuels a famous football player? Did Cady become an international math superstar? Did fetch ever happen, despite the constant efforts to make it not happen? Unfortunately, we just don’t know, and probably never will. Seyfried interviewed her former co-star Lindsay Lohan to confirm that it probably won’t be happening any time soon, but they might be interested in working as understudies on Broadway if it ever comes down to it.

SEYFRIED: I would kill just to do one week, all of us playing our own roles on Mean Girls on Broadway.

LOHAN: That would be really fun.

SEYFRIED: Because a Mean Girls 2 is never going to happen, is it?

LOHAN: I don’t know. I heard something about it being a movie musical and I was like, “Oh no.” We can’t do that. It has to be the same tone.

SEYFRIED: Yeah. It would just be completely different.

LOHAN: Exactly. [Laughs]

SEYFRIED: Anyway, Tina [Fey] is busy. She’ll get around to it. Listen, we’re all part of each other’s worlds whether we like it or not, and it is really nice to be in contact as adults.

LOHAN: Yeah, everyone’s still the same. It’s fun to have certain memories that we can’t share with anyone else.

This is just the final nail in the coffin after star Lizzy Caplan recently told Grazia that while it would be fun, an iconic movie probably doesn’t need a sequel. “Of course I would want to be a part of it; I would be an idiot not to join,” the actress explained. “But to me it feels like Mean Girls had a really good beginning, middle and end. I don’t know what’s left of the story.”

Still, Seyfried said that she is very grateful for the experience in the cult classic movie. “Ten years ago I used to be like, “Yeah, yeah, I was Karen in Mean Girls, for f*ck’s sake.” Now I’m like, “I was Karen in Mean Girls!” I’m very proud of it.” Maybe it wasn’t all about the movie, but the Fetch we made along the way.

(Via Interview)

Christine McVie, a longtime member of Fleetwood Mac, died today, November 30, according to posts on her Twitter and Facebook pages. She was 79 years old.

The statement reads:

“On behalf of Christine McVie’s family, it is with a heavy heart we are informing you of Christine’s death. She passed away peacefully at hospital this morning, Wednesday, November 30th 2022, following a short illness. She was in the company of her family. We kindly ask that you respect the family’s privacy at this extremely painful time, and we would like everyone to keep Christine in their hearts and remember the life of an incredible human being, and revered musician who was loved universally. RIP Christine McVie.”

Fleetwood Mac also shared a statement about her passing:

“There are no words to describe our sadness at the passing of Christine McVie. She was truly one-of-a-kind, special and talented beyond measure. She was the best musician anyone could have in their band and the best friend anyone could have in their life. We were so lucky to have a life with her. Individually and together, we cherished Christine deeply and are thankful for the amazing memories we have. She will be so very missed. – Fleetwood Mac.”

McVie was born Christine Perfect on July 12, 1974. She later married Fleetwood Mac’s John McVie and joined the band in 1970 as a vocalist and keyboardist. She became an important member of the group and wrote some of their most beloved songs, including the No. 3 hit “Don’t Stop.” McVie had a memorable career outside of the band, too: Her 1984 solo single “Got A Hold On Me” peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1998, she was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame as a member of Fleetwood Mac.

Last week, rumors spread that The Athletic’s Shams Charania, one of the preeminent NBA newsbreakers in the industry, ran the Twitter account @TheHoopCentral, which aggregates reports, highlights, and other NBA-related content. The suspicions circulated from these screenshots, which seemed to indicate Charania was sharing his own Instagram post via The Hoop Central’s page.

On Wednesday, appearing on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Charania put those rumors to rest and clarified he is not the one behind The Hoop Central. Before answering genuinely, Charania sarcastically owned up to running The Hoop Central, saying among his responsibilities with The Athletic, Stadium, and FanDuel, he also runs a page sending out 500 tweets per day to more than one million followers.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have the time or the juice,” said Charania, who was met with discontent from McAfee and others. “I’m sorry to all the listeners. Unfortunately, that isn’t me. But listen, shout out to that account. They do a good job, as far as when they aggregate information, they always check to make sure they’re that they’re aggregating it the right way. That’s really what happened that day. So, shout out to them.”

“I appreciate everyone online who actually thinks I have the time,” he continued. “I feel like I just broke the hearts of everyone listening that thought I was running that account.”

Joel Deleōn is making his return to music next month. On Monday Night (November 28), the ex-CNCO star revealed the release date for his next single “IDK Y.”

As Joel Pimentel, he first launched his career in 2015 as a member of CNCO. Ricky Martin helped put him into a group with Richard Camacho, Erick Brian Colón, Zabdiel De Jesús, Christopher Vélez on the reality series La Banda. Following a few years of success of with CNCO, Deleōn decided to leave the group in May 2021.

Adopting his second last name and the name of his late grandfather, he kicked off his solo career in October 2021 as Joel Deleōn. That month, the Mexican-American singer released his debut single “La Culpa.” In January, Deleōn dropped his second single “Coco.”

After nearly the rest of the year without releasing new music, Deleōn will drop his new single “IDKY Y” on December 16. When his fan base District D left 100k comments on his Instagram announcement post, he revealed the song’s release date and a preview of the futuristic music video.

Deleōn promises that fans who pre-save “IDKY Y” will be receiving a surprise from him soon. In the an audio preview of the song, he appears to be embracing elements of dance music.

Can he go three-for-three? Well, budding rapper Saucy Santana is certainly going to give it a try. With two successful tracks, “Booty” featuring Latto and “I’m Too Much” under his belt as a signed artist, the proud Florida representer continues his Grammy bid with new single, “Bop Bop.”

The song produced by Tre Trax follows Santana’s signature danceable uptempo pop-rap formula. Pulling together subtle references from hits of the past, in just over two minutes, Santana has a solid single on his hands. On his RCA-debut single, “Booty” featuring Latto sampled Chi-Lites’s 1970 song “Are You My Woman? (Tell Me So)” (made popular by Beyoncé’s “Crazy In Love”). This go-around, Santana draws inspiration from rapper-turned-actor Will Smith’s 1992 The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme song and Remy Ma’s 2006 song “Conceited.”

“Bop Bop” opens with an eerily familiar-sounding pre-chorus. As Santana raps, “When I’m on the scene all the hoes gon’ jock / Phone gon’ ring, coins don’t stop / Clubbin’ all night, bottles gon’ pop / Step off in the spot, bop-bop-bop,” it is nearly impossible to ignore the similarities in its cadence and that heard in Khia’s 2002 cult-classic “My Neck My Back.” While the opening of “My Neck My Back” relied on a steady snare, Santana elevated the sound to include the flair of a cymbal.

Co-written by Sage Skolfield, in the first verse Santana gets right to his bag-securing mission paying homage to Will Smith as he raps, “This a lil’ story all about how you run a n**** pockets only usin’ ya mouth / Talkin’, talkin’ ’bout his bread / Talkin’ ’bout his cheese.”

As the chorus comes in Santana gives a faint nod to Remy Ma with the repeated line, “It’s whatever.” Then on the second verse, Santana lets the listener know he doesn’t have time to be tied down with love but he gets plenty of suitors as he raps, “I got the sauce and the boys McLovin’ / can’t keep a man ’cause a bitch be clubbin’ / Bad b*tch that got plenty / don’t ask who, ask how many.”

While the track is fun and trendy, quintessential Saucy Santana, it doesn’t quite reach the same charisma as “Booty.” However, Santana has proven to be a grower and not a shower. After a few months of viral campaigning on TikTok, he very well may have another hit on his hands.

Listen to “Bop Bop” above.

Though Coi Leray only dropped her major label debut album, Trendsetter, this past April, she’s already gifting fans with her new music. On her latest single, “Players,” Leray takes control of the game, and embraces her inner player.

“If he broke then you gotta let him know / You could have anybody, eeny, miny, moe / ‘Cause when you a boss, you could do what you want / ‘Cause girls is players too,” raps Leray over a sample of of “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash & Furious Five.

“Players” arrives after weeks of Leray teasing the song on TikTok. In a recent interview with I-D, Leray said TikTok has been essential in helping propel her career, however, she knows she is more than a simple flash-in-the-pan. While she aims for more longevity than viral memes, she hopes to help her peers in the game navigate the industry from the beginning of their careers.

“People tried to make me out to be a TikTok artist and limit me to just being a social media girl,” Leray said. “Now you see in 2022… everybody and their grandmother’s on TikTok. There’s not one major artist not asking, ‘How do I get on TikTok?’ It’s one of those things where you gotta educate your peers, and I’m here to do that, for real.”

Check out “Players” above.

While wins have been hard to come by for the Orlando Magic so far this season, there are plenty of reasons for optimism surrounding one of the youngest teams in the league. One of the players responsible for this is Bol Bol, who has carved out quite the role in Orlando as part of his career reset after things didn’t quite work out for him in Denver.

On the season, Bol is averaging 13.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, and two blocks in 27.1 minutes per game while connecting on 41.9 percent of his attempts from behind the three-point line. His play has encouraged his teammates, with Paolo Banchero talking to HoopsHype and coming close to comparing the uniqueness of Bol’s game to Victor Wembanyama, the presumed No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.

“Everyone talks about the Victor dude from France,” Banchero said. “I’m not trying to compare them, but Bol’s 7-foot-2, shoots threes, brings it up the court, makes passes, and blocks shots. I feel like people kind of forget about him, but Bol’s a freak of nature.”

Banchero went on to say that Bol’s play this season has not caught the Magic by surprise, citing the times they played together over the offseason and Bol’s track record as a blue-chip recruit in high school.

“He’s ultra-talented at 7-foot-2, can shoot pull-up threes, and block shots all around the court,” Banchero said. “He moves like a 6-foot-5 shooting guard. It’s crazy.”

The Magic are 5-16 on the season. Of their seven top leading scorers, only Gary Harris is older than 23.

Following GloRilla’s recent Grammy nomination for Best Rap Performance, there are a lot of artists anticipating working with her it seems. One of those is DJ Jermaine Chambers, who posted a recent Facebook statement claiming that the rapper called him and wanted to collaborate on a song.

“So GloRilla just called me and told me to pack my bags,” he wrote. “It’s time to turn my state up one more time.”

Eventually, Glo caught wind of Chambers’ post and had some choice words for his claim. “What are your talking about,” she responded. “Ian said sh*t like dat.”

Glo is frequently active on her Facebook under her real name Gloria Woods. A while back, she assisted a fan who needed help with bills as a birthday gift.

Despite her generosity for fans on social media, GloRilla doesn’t stay quiet when it comes to getting hate and weird comments. She recently fired back about people who didn’t like her music or positive nature. At the end of the day, she’s laughing with her Grammy nod.

“The same song they was clowning me & my friends about saying we was Ugly & Dusty just got nominated for a Grammy,” she posted. “WHEN GOD IS ON YOUR SIDE YOU CANNOT FAIL. BUT GOD.”

As Avatar: The Way of Water gets ready to dive into theaters this month, the sequel is testing the cultural impact of the first Avatar film. In the process, James Cameron has not been shy about his filmmaking process for the sequel that’s 13 years in the making. In his latest interview, Cameron reiterated that, unlike the Marvel movies, the Avatar sequel will show his heroes actually growing and taking on the greatest challenge of them all: raising a family.

In order to tackle Jake and Neytiri’s role as parents, Cameron admits that he mined his interactions with his own kids to flesh out the dynamic at the center of The Way of Water. Via The Hollywood Reporter:

“I’m on a rules-based universe, and the kids weren’t into it,” Cameron says. “They said, ‘You’re never around half the time. And, then, when you come home, you try to make up for it by telling us all what to do. And Mom’s really the one that’s been making all the rules the whole time while you’ve been off shooting. So you don’t get to come home and do that.’”

More specifically, Cameron used the sequel to grapple with bringing his domineering directorial style home with him instead of leaving it on set. In a surprisingly open and self-deprecating moment, Cameron admits that he can be a lot to deal with as a dad, and his kids were right to call him out.

“I thought, ‘I’m going to work out a lot of my stuff, artistically, that I’ve gone through as a parent of five kids,’” Cameron told THR. “The overarching idea is, the family is the fortress. It’s our greatest weakness and our greatest strength. I thought, ‘I can write the hell out of this. I know what it is to be the asshole dad.’”

Avatar: The Way of Water hits theaters on December 16.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)