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Taylor Swift dropped the music video for “Anti-Hero,” a song from her new album, Midnights, earlier this week. One scene in particular drew criticism online, as Swift — who has had a documented history with body image and disordered eating — stood on a scale bearing the word “fat.” Many pointed out that, despite that being her perception, the usage could be harmful to other viewers. The moment has since been edited out of the video on Apple Music, although it remains unedited on YouTube.

The “Anti-Hero” scene removal isn’t Swift’s first moment of swapping out parts of a song or music video. Continue scrolling to see some of her edited moments across her discography.

On Swift’s 2006 self-titled debut album, two songs received changes. The first, “Teardrops On My Guitar,” got a radio-edited version, which changed “I laugh ’cause it’s so damn funny” to “I laugh ’cause it’s just so funny.” The other, “Picture To Burn,” switched out “I’ll tell mine you’re gay” with “You won’t mind if I say” permanently, for obvious reasons.

The re-recorded version of Swift’s sophomore record, 2021’s Fearless (Taylor’s Version) found her changing three minor lyrics to songs. “You Belong With Me” was changed from “the room” to “my room” in a lyric. “Superstar” saw the change of “keep my eyes” from the original “take my eyes,” but only in the updated song’s first verse. Finally, one of the vault tracks, “Bye Bye Baby,” used to be a demo called “One Thing.” Eagle-eyed Swifties noticed the change from the demo’s “All you have is to walk away from the one thing I thought would never leave me” to “And all I have is your sympathy because you took me home but you just couldn’t keep me” in the final version.

Before “Anti-Hero,” Swift’s most recent change occurred during her Lover album era in 2019. The debut single, “Me!” found the removal of Swift’s enthusiastic “Hey kids! Spelling is fun!” line on both Apple Music and Spotify after many fans online questioned her decision to include it.

Midnights is out now via Republic. Stream it here.

The NBA’s first week has concluded. Everyone, aside from the 2-0 Milwaukee Bucks, has logged at least three games. The 4-0 Portland Trail Blazers are on pace to host the NBA Finals. The 0-4 Orlando Magic are rivaling the 0-3 Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers in the race for Victor Wembanyama (congrats to the New Orleans Pelicans, who own the right to swap 2023 first-round picks with Los Angeles and also have a 3-1 record). Ja Morant is the league’s leading scorer, trapezing, propelling, and contorting himself to 35.3 points a night on 68.5 percent true shooting.

These are only a slew of the developments from the last eight days of action, though. There’s been plenty of intrigue from players off to encouraging starts, veterans and rookies alike. Let’s dive into some of the fun wrinkles to open 2022-23.

Jaden Ivey’s dynamic driving and finishing

Although the 1-3 Detroit Pistons have floundered out of the gates — the team has been bogged down by a three-game losing streak, including a pair of blowout defeats — their No. 5 overall pick, Jaden Ivey, is fashioning an early case for an First Team All-Rookie nod. Through four games, the 6’4 jet engine in sneakers is averaging 16 points (56.5 percent true shooting), 5.5 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.5 steals.

He’s dazzled with some impressive off-the-bounce shot-making, but most notably, his zippy first step and creative finishing are the leading exploits. His flexibility and ingenuity around the rim are mystifying, which amplifies the fact he’s incredibly arduous to stay in front of, especially once the defense is already tilted. According to Cleaning the Glass, his 51 percent rim frequency ranks in the 100th percentile among combo guards, while his 62 percent conversion rate (15-for-24) is in the 70th percentile.

Continuing a trend from preseason, he’s also been a perceptive cutter, particularly alongside Cade Cunningham. Nightly, it seems he conjures up a bewilderingly joyful drive and finish. There are some eerie similarities between he and Morant’s slashing ethos at times. Ivey’s rarified speed has immediately translated to scoring proficiency and it’s been a delight to witness.

Julius Randle’s rekindled offensive approach

The 2-1 New York Knicks are playing good ball. Julius Randle, after a disappointing encore to his 2020-21 All-NBA breakout, is playing good ball. The veteran forward is averaging 21.3 points (60.2 percent true shooting), 9.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists a night. His defensive engagement resembles 2020-21 rather than the frustrations of 2021-22. Some of Randle’s efforts against rookie sensation Paolo Banchero in ball-screens and denial opportunities on Monday were tremendous.

The heightened execution defensively is accompanied by a renewed offensive approach, one he operated with throughout 2020-21 and briefly built upon last season before regressing into detrimental habits. He’s applying his smooth ball-handling to fold defenses and often opting out of challenging pull-ups in favor of quality looks for his fellow Knickerbockers. His four assists against the Orlando Magic understate his playmaking impact that day.

He routinely primed open shots and avoided many of the midrange fadeaways complicit in his 2021-22 pitfalls. When he did take those shots, they felt natural and comfortable instead of the resigned decision following a failed creation attempt. Although his 15.9 percent assist rate is his lowest in three seasons, his 9.2 percent turnover rate is the best of his career.

His play-style is that of someone who spearheaded a surprising Knicks run to the playoffs two years ago and not the one whose struggles were a suitable reflection of their underwhelming 2021-22. It’s been tremendous to watch this resurgence, regardless of the small sample. The process is sound and improved, and that’s most salient early in the year.

Josh Hart, the transition dynamo

Damian Lillard affirming his superstar status after an injury-riddled 2021-22 is the headline behind the Blazers’ undefeated start (he’s averaging 33-5-5 on 67 percent true shooting). Versatile wing play from the fellas such as Josh Hart, Jerami Grant, Justise Winslow, and Nassir Little are worthy of recognition, too.

Following his trade from New Orleans to Portland last February, Hart assumed a grand offensive role, where he succeeded admirably: 19.9 points, 62.2 percent true shooting, 24.5 percent usage rate. Yet the slew of absences from the Blazers’ typical rotation (namely, Lillard) prohibited folks from seeing how he’d fit when the club reclaimed the luxury of health.

He’s quickly illuminated that value, dominating on both sides of the glass (10.3 rebounds per game), rotating to muck up drives, and providing Portland with magnitudes of strength and screen navigation on the wing it’s missed for years. For instance, Devin Booker dropped 33 on 11-for-23 shooting Friday, but Hart hounded him around picks and tested the extent of Booker’s star shot-making.

Most notably, the Villanova product has been a freight train in the open court. He finds any possible seam in the defense and slices through it. If there isn’t one to be located, that’s fine, he’ll just rumble his way through contact for buckets or fouls. Fast-break chances do not stumble into his lap. He demands that they occur, independent of whether the circumstances are ripe.

According to Synergy, his 35.7 percent transition frequency is third-highest among 78 eligible players and his 1.333 points per possession ranks in the 73rd percentile. He’s drawing a shooting foul on 33.3 percent of his reps, fourth among the 78-player group. The manner in which he seeks contact is akin to a slalom skier whose intention is to truck through the gates rather than veer around them. Once he dips that shoulder, the opposition’s fate is written.

Jayson Tatum, expanding his shot portfolio

It’s far too early to discuss MVP. I won’t do it. I refuse. I will not succumb to that siren song. Nobody’s even played five games. Hypothetically, though, if I was going to discuss early MVP candidates, Jayson Tatum would factor in prominently at worst and dominate the conversation at best. Fresh off his first NBA Finals appearance, the 24-year-old is 32.5 points (68.7 percent true shooting), 8.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.3 blocks, shepherding wins over presumptive fellow Eastern Conference contenders in the Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat.

His rim frequency (38 percent) is the second-best of his career. His finishing (76 percent) is at a career-best. He’s netting self-created midrange attempts to unforeseen lengths. He’s built upon last year’s comfort playing through contact to post a career-best .383 free-throw rate. The offensive maximization of his 6’10 frame is finally coming into focus. The defense is multifaceted and exquisite.

Early on in his NBA tenure, Tatum’s finishing and driving existed as glaring weaknesses, which contributed to his inability to crack 50 percent on 2s until 2020-21 (midrange struggles were at play as well). To avoid the sprawling limbs of rim protectors, the counter long appeared to incorporate a floater into his bag of tricks. That, of course, is easier said than done effectively, but it always stood as an avenue for further diversification and development of his scoring.

Over the past couple years, he’s refined his driving and finishing styles, but the floater escaped him last season after experimenting with it to greater degrees following his rookie campaign. In 2022-23, it appears to have resurfaced, a move he’ll discreetly bust out when a layup or dunk isn’t available.

According to Synergy, his frequency on runners has spiked from 4.6 percent last year to 8.8 percent this year, and he’s 5 of 7 to begin the season. With such a small sample, the efficiency itself is trivial, but Tatum bringing this shot back to complement his finishing progression can embed another layer into his potent scoring repertoire.

Taylor Swift‘s 10th studio album, Midnights is proving to be one of the buzziest albums of the year. Many are lauding Swift’s latest effort, but her new era hasn’t arrived without its faults.

In the video for “Anti-Hero,” Swift is seen standing on a scale, which then turns to read “fat” instead of her actual weight. While the video seems to represent how the media has treated Swift, several viewers took issue with this specific part.

In an essay penned for Huffington Post titled “I Love Taylor Swift, But There’s A Big Problem With Her New Video,” writer Juliet James wrote, “Taylor Swift is not, and has never been, even remotely fat. In fact, some of the negative criticism she’s faced related to body image was about being ‘too skinny.’ Swift has admitted this bothers her, but she has also talked about how she’s seen comments speculating about her maybe being pregnant, and how those comments have resulted in her not eating.”

Swift has not directly addressed the matter. However, fans noticed that this part of the video has been updated on Apple Music.

In the updated version, Swift is seen looking at the scale, however, the scale doesn’t show any sort of numbers or messages.

Many fans praised the updated version, with one Twitter user saying, “taylor changed her anti hero music video on apple music and it doesn’t directly show the word on the scale. so glad she listened to criticism.”

Some posit that she should’ve kept the scale in the video, as another Twitter user said, “this is actually so sad because taylor definitely saw all the people not caring about her OWN experience with her OWN body.”

At the time of writing, the video for “Anti-Hero” is still in its original iteration on YouTube.

Representatives for Swift did not immediately reply to our request for comment.

Midnights is out now via Republic. Stream it here.

Marjorie Taylor Greene presents herself as a gun-toting, Crossfit-loving conservative battle-axe who will never back down from her beliefs. Unless, of course, you ask her to defend those beliefs over the phone. In which case, Greene will absolutely flee the area leaving everybody very confused about where she just went.

That was the scene during Monday’s episode of the northern Georgia talk show, Night Talk. Greene appeared on the episode where she fielded calls from local voters. Unfortunately, the screening process did not stop a few callers from getting through and challenging Greene to defend her stance on banning abortion with zero exceptions. Things got especially heated when Greene was asked if she’d punish a 10-year-old rape victim for having an abortion.

“A child abuser and a rapist should be put to death if they are doing that to a 10-year-old child,” Greene said via Newsweek. “Number one, I think that should be our focus. That is a very rare, rare, rare, rare occasion, so that should not be the entire premise of the argument on abortion.”

However, when the show cut to commercial and returned, Greene was missing. The confused hosts continued to take questions after noting that “she’s gone.”

“We’ll take your calls and comments and whatever you have to say, but she left. She said she’d enjoyed my show and she’s through, and she got up and left,” host Judy O’Neal said. “So, she’s outta here. Nothing I can do about that.”

According to a spokesperson for Greene, the congresswoman left because the show went over an hour, and she was “only scheduled for one.” Tough luck, Georgia voters.

(Via Newsweek)

Bad Bunny is continuing to dominate awards season. With the People’s Choice Awards nominations announced today (October 26), the Puerto Rican superstar was revealed to be this year’s most-nominated artist.

Among the music categories at the People’s Choice Awards, Bad Bunny leads with seven nominations. He’s followed by Harry Styles who earned six nominations. Thanks to the success of his album Un Verano Sin Ti, Bad Bunny is represented in all the top music categories.

Bad Bunny’s nominations include Male Artist Of The Year, where he faces Styles, and Album Of The Year. His global hit “Me Porto Bonito” featuring Chencho Corleone is nominated for Song Of The Year while “Party” with Rauw Alejandro is up for Collaboration Of The Year. Bad Bunny’s sell-out World’s Hottest Tour is nominated for Tour Of The Year.

In the Latin Artist Of The Year category, Bad Bunny is up against Alejandro, Karol G, Becky G, and Shakira. Additional nominees in the category include Spanish pop star Rosalía, Sebastián Yatra, and Anitta.

This year, the PCAs will be hosted by actor and comedian Kenan Thompson for a second time in a row. Fans can now vote for their favorite nominees here. The 2022 People’s Choice Awards will air live from Santa Monica on E! and NBC on December 9.

We’ve almost made it to the real holiday season, and Netflix remains committed to giving us plenty of content to binge after we’ve binged too much food on Thanksgiving. With that in mind, there’s a genuine feast here with returning seasons of high royal drama in The Crown as we see Princess Diana push back against The Firm with plenty of fallout to come. As well, returning seasons of stellar black comedy Dead To Me and the resurrection of Manifest will be big areas of focus. And don’t count out Zac Efron scampering back in his irresistible show where he raves about the coolness of science and eats a lot of carbs with relish.

Netflix also has a heaping helping of true crime documentaries on tap, a Jason Momoa movie, and the new Wednesday series from Tim Burton. Library editions also include a bunch of Key & Peele, so you can practice your best Hingle McCringleberry moves before the big game.

Here’s everything coming to (and leaving) Netflix in November.

The Crown: Season 5 (Netflix series streaming 11/9)

The British Royals are obviously not thrilled with this impending season, particularly because it puts Charles on blast, not only for allegedly acting resentful about his wait to become monarch, but also his disastrous marriage to Diana. The above trailer sees Charles blowing up when Diana attempts to take control of her own story, and naturally, we see a lot of him canoodling with Camilla Parker Bowles. The show did note that this is a fictionalized dramatization, but that probably won’t help calm tempers. Importantly, though, the show won’t show Diana’s moment of impact that led to her death in Season 6, but Dodi Fayed will soon be on the scene.

Manifest: Season 4, Part A (Netflix series streaming 11/2)

Cal suddenly being five years older doesn’t even scratch the top 10 of WTF moments on this show, but here we are. Netflix picked this show up after NBC cancelled it, and we’ll see if all those people who watched the first season on Netflix will return to see more. It looks like all of the characters remain confused as hell about Flight 828 and why it disappeared for a few seconds that turned into five years. Expect to see many more Death Date mentions and callings and red herrings and a total fiasco as showrunner Jeff Rake aims to bring this nonsensical sci-fi show in for a landing.

Dead To Me: Season 3 (Netflix series streaming 11/17)

Finally, the black comedy dream team of Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini is back together again, and wait, does James Mardsen live (and die) again? I love that this series showcases the unlikely but incredible friendship between these two messy women, and hopefully, we’ll get more headbanging to Caliban, too.

Down To Earth With Zac Efron: Down Under (Netflix series streaming 11/11)

Get ready to see an abundance of “sick” and “mind blown” exclamations from an actor who’s fully coming into his own these days but makes time to enjoy science and promote sustainability. Zac Efron and Darin Olien dive headfirst into Australian culture, which of course includes hanging with kangaroos and koalas. This show turned out to be a beautiful, simple, glorious pleasure, so we’re happy to see it return.

Slumberland (Netflix movie streaming 11/18)

Speaking of actors who exclaim, “Ssssiiicccckkkkkk!” We’ve got Jason Momoa as a horned, Willy Wonka-like figure in this movie where he wreaks havoc in a dream world. You can’t ignore this one.

Killer Sally (Netflix limited series streaming 11/2)

Netflix is on a true-crime tear these days (we’ll also see Joe Berlingers’s Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields arrive this month), and this three-part docuseries follows bodybuilder Sally McNeil as she traces the path that led her to kill her (also bodybuilding) husband on Valentine’s Day, decades ago. Her grown children take center stage in relating what they experienced, and this doesn’t take a typically charted path.

Wednesday (Netflix limited series streaming 11/23)

Tim Burton apparently made an “eight-hour Tim Burton movie,” starring Jenna Ortega as the title character and Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia, along with Luis Guzmán as Gomez, but this isn’t quite an Addams Family reboot. Rather, Wednesday solves mysteries, and this is something completely separate from the beloved TV show of the 1960s. It also looks wicked fun.

Avail. TBA
The Last Dolphin King

Avail. 11/1
Attack on Finland
The Bad Guys
The Bodyguard
Dennis the Menace
Dolphin Tale
Gabby’s Dollhouse: Season 6
Key & Peele: Seasons 1 – 3
The Legend of Zorro
The Little Rascals
The Little Rascals Save the Day
Man on a Ledge
The Mask of Zorro
Mile 22
Moneyball
Notting Hill
Oblivion
The Pink Panther
The Pink Panther 2
Still Alice
The Takeover
Think Like a Man
Top Gear: Season 31
Training Day
Up in the Air

Avail. 11/2
The Final Score
Young Royals: Season 2
Killer Sally

Avail. 11/3
Blockbuster
The Dragon Prince: Season 4
Panayotis Pascot: Almost

Avail. 11/4
Buying Beverly Hills
Ẹlẹṣin Ọba: The King’s Horseman
Enola Holmes 2
The Fabulous
Lookism
Manifest: Season 4 Part 1

Avail. 11/5
Orgasm Inc: The Story of OneTaste

Avail. 11/6
Captain Phillips

Avail. 11/7
Deepa & Anoop: Season 2

Avail. 11/8
Behind Every Star
The Claus Family 2
Minions & More Volume 2
Neal Brennan: Blocks
Triviaverse

Avail. 11/9
Angels & Demons
The Crown: Season 5
FIFA Uncovered
The Railway Man
The Soccer Football Movie

Avail. 11/10
Falling for Christmas
Lost Bullet 2
Love Never Lies: Destination Sardinia
State of Alabama vs. Brittany Smith
Warrior Nun: Season 2

Avail. 11/11
Ancient Apocalypse
Capturing the Killer Nurse
Don’t Leave
Down to Earth with Zac Efron: Season 2: Down Under
Goosebumps
Is That Black Enough for You?!?
Laguna Beach: Seasons 1-2
Monica, O My Darling
My Father’s Dragon

Avail. 11/14
Stutz
Teletubbies

Avail. 11/15
Deon Cole: Charleen’s Boy
Johanna Nordström: Call the Police
Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous: Hidden Adventure
Run for the Money

Avail. 11/16
In Her Hands
The Lost Lotteries
Mind Your Manners
Off Track
Racionais MC’s: From the Streets of São Paulo
The Wonder

Avail. 11/17
1899
Bantú Mama
Christmas with You
Dead to Me: Season 3
I Am Vanessa Guillen
Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?

Avail. 11/18
The Cuphead Show!: Part 3
Elite: Season 6
The Great British Baking Show: Holidays: Season 5
Inside Job: Part 2
Reign Supreme
Slumberland
Somebody
The Violence Action

Avail. 11/21
My Little Pony: Winter Wishday
StoryBots: Answer Time

Avail. 11/22
LEGO: City Adventures: Season 4
Trevor Noah: I Wish You Would

Avail. 11/23
The Boxtrolls
Blood, Sex & Royalty
Christmas on Mistletoe Farm
Lesson Plan
The Swimmers
Taco Chronicles: Cross the Border
The Unbroken Voice
Wednesday
Who’s a Good Boy?

Avail. 11/24
First Love
The Noel Diary
Southpaw
The Vanishing
Tyler Perry’s Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor

Avail. 11/25
Blood & Water: Season 3
Ghislaine Maxwell: Filthy Rich

Avail. 11/28
The Action Pack Saves Christmas

Avail. 11/29
The Creature Cases: Season 2
Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields
Romesh Ranganathan: The Cynic

Avail. 11/30
A Man of Action
My Name Is Vendetta
The Lost Patient
Snack VS. Chef
Take Your Pills: Xanax

And it’s your last chance to stream these titles:

Leaving 11/1
From Dusk Till Dawn: Seasons 1-3
Mossad 101: Seasons 1-2

Leaving 11/11
If Anything Happens I Love You

Leaving 11/13
Scary Movie 5

Leaving 11/14
America’s Next Top Model: Seasons 21-22
Survivor: Season 16: Micronesia
Survivor: Season 37: David vs. Goliath

Leaving 11/15
Suffragette
The Green Inferno

Leaving 11/18
Donald Glover: Weirdo
Goosebumps: Seasons 1-4
Goosebumps: Specials

Leaving 11/30
Bridget Jones’s Baby
Clueless
The Color Purple
Hancock
He’s Just Not That Into You
Ink Master: Seasons 3-4
Knight Rider 2000
Knight Rider: Seasons 1-4
Stargate SG-1: Seasons 1-10

CNCO is letting its fans into the band’s final days as a quintet. Yesterday (October 25), the Latin boy band released the Disney+ documentary Los Últimos Cinco Días where the remaining members talked about the departure of their bandmate Joel Pimentel.

In 2015, CNCO was formed on the reality TV competition La Banda with the help of Ricky Martin. Richard Camacho, Erick Brian Colón, Zabdiel De Jesús, Christopher Vélez, and Pimentel were put in the group together. The guys went on to become one of the best-selling Latin acts of the past decade. In May 2021, Pimentel shocked fans when he announced that he was leaving the group. A few days later, CNCO performed its last show together as a quintet.

Camacho, Colón, De Jesús, and Vélez have carried on with CNCO as a quartet. Over a year since Pimentel’s departure, they are now releasing footage of their final concert with him as part of Los Últimos Cinco Días, or “The Last Five Days” in English. The documentary shows the band’s preparation that went into the show and all five original members discuss Pimentel’s plans to exit CNCO.

“I think this is literally the first time that I’m talking about this,” Colón says in the trailer. Pimentel’s voice can be heard saying, “I’m definitely going have four more brothers for the rest of my life.”

In August, CNCO released XOXO, the band’s first album as a quartet. The LP featured Mexican pop star Kenia Os and Colombian singer Beéle. CNCO will also be starring in the upcoming Disney+ scripted series 4Ever. Last October, Pimentel launched his solo career as Joel Deleōn with his single “La Culpa.”

The world has been trying to piece together the very blurry Don’t Worry Darling timeline as of late, because if there is one thing we can all learn from this experience it is that things are never how they actually seem! Sure, it might look the like the whole cast hated each other and yes, nobody really knows what went down on that set, but at least we got an aesthetically interesting movie out of it, right?

Beyond the cast’s drama is the very messy Olivia Wilde/ Jason Sudeikis breakup that has people questioning exactly what happened between Wilde/Styles/Sudeikis. Even though this is a private family matter, their former nanny is coming out with some receipts to try to prove that the whole thing is a lot more complex than we think. And it was already so confusing!

Last month, Wilde shot down the rumors that she left Sudeikis for Styles while on the set of Don’t Worry Darling. “The complete horsesh*t idea that I left Jason for Harry is completely inaccurate. Our relationship was over long before I met Harry. Like any relationship that ends, it doesn’t end overnight. Unfortunately, Jason and I had a very bumpy road, and we officially dissolved the relationship towards the beginning of the pandemic,” Wilde said, adding that they lived together in order to co-parent their two young children.

Now, the family’s former nanny says that the claim was false. “Look at her ring on Labor Day weekend,” the unnamed nanny told The Daily Mail. “This was right before she started seeing Harry. She’s wearing her engagement ring from Jason and laughing as she’s on the beach.” The nanny also claimed she was making wedding plans with Sudeikis up until October when she began spending time away from home and eating salads with Harry Styles.

By November, Wilde was already dating Styles, though she was often seen around with Sudeikis, who was allegedly “erratic” and “unstable” according to the nanny, who would act as a “therapist” to the Ted Lasso star once photos of Wilde and Styles began circling online in early 2021. The nanny claims that Wilde was also sending affectionate texts to her ex when she was still with Styles.

The nanny added, “One thing about Olivia is she likes to just act like there’s no problems. Nothing’s there. When you bring something up to her she just doesn’t know how to deal with things. She blows them to the side.” Earlier this week it was reported that Wilde thought that Styles and co-star Florence Pugh were allegedly hooking up off-set.

Wilde and Sudeikis made a rare joint statement to dismiss the claims, “As parents, it is incredibly upsetting to learn that a former nanny of our two young children would choose to make such false and scurrilous accusations about us publicly.” The moral of the story? Maybe we should let people sort out their stuff in private!

(Via Yahoo!)

After cryptic billboards popped up last week for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, many fans speculated that Rihanna was involved in the movie after the letter “R” was separated with the release date of October 28.

Journalist Kyle Buchanan had alluded to her participation from the billboards. “Rumors are flying and I can add to them: I’ve been hearing for weeks that Rihanna is recording the end-credits song for BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER. How do you follow up a classic like ‘All the Stars’? By snagging Rihanna’s first big song in years,” he posted.

Now, it has been confirmed that Queen RiRi is dropping a new song, “Lift Me Up,” from the film’s soundtrack. She confirmed the news on social media today, marking her first new song in years.

Co-written by Rihanna, Ludwig Göransson, Wakanda Forever director Ryan Coogler, and Tems, “Lift Me Up” is believed to be a tribute to the late actor Chadwick Boseman, who passed away from cancer prior to the completion of the second film.

“After speaking with Ryan and hearing his direction for the film and the song, I wanted to write something that portrays a warm embrace from all the people that I’ve lost in my life,” Tems shared in a statement. “I tried to imagine what it would feel like if I could sing to them now and express how much I miss them. Rihanna has been an inspiration to me so hearing her convey this song is a great honor.”

“Lift Me Up” is out on 10/29. Pre-save it here. Wakanda Forever is out in theaters on 11/11.

At long last, SZA’s much-anticipated single, “Shirt,” is finally scheduled for a proper release. The song, which she has been teasing for almost two years, is set to arrive later this week.

SZA first teased “Shirt” in her video for “Good Days,” which premiered in March of 2021. A snippet of “Shirt” plays at the end of the “Good Days” video, with the lyrics, “Kiss me, dangerous / Been so lost without you all around me / Getting anxious / Leave me, don’t look back, it’s all about you.”

During her set at the second weekend of Austin City Limits earlier this month, SZA confirmed that “Shirt” was set to drop that weekend, however, she was not satisfied with parts of the song’s music video. She then revealed that she had addressed the elements, and the final video and single have been turned in.

Today (October 26), the singer and songwriter announced the song’s release date in a tweet, with a clip from the Dave Meyers-directed music video. In the clip, she is seen in a diner chatting with a man played by Lakeith Stanfield, before things quickly go south.

Check out a preview of the “Shirt” video above.

“Shirt” is out 10/28 via Top Dawg Entertainment and RCA.