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Upworthy Weekly podcast: Making your own luck, vasectomies, retrospective aging

The show opens with Tod sharing great advice on making your own luck he learned from Dr. Christian Busch. Later, why did people look older in the past and should young guys get vasectomies?

Plus, advice for living in ridiculous times and Alison has COVID-19.

Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or iHeart Radio.


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Zendaya May Not Be On ‘The Bear’ Anytime Soon After Her Attempt At Cooking Landed Her In The Emergency Room

Zendaya is a renaissance woman, beloved as an actress and a singer. But one thing she is not is a cook. Should anyone from The Bear ever seek to enlist her talents, they should check out some of out her recent Instagram stories, where she revealed that a recent attempt at home cooking landed her in the emergency room.

On Wednesday, Zendaya apparently attempted to cook for herself, maybe as a celebratory act after Hoovering up four whole Emmy nominations. She did not go into details about what she was cooking and with what implements. But it appears that she had a mishap, presumably with some sharp knife that did a number on her finger.

One image showed her bandaged-up finger, with a hulking mass of crimson bleeding through the gauze. “See now…this is why I don’t cook,” she wrote in the caption.

Even her P.A. Darnell Appling got in on the action. ““Never a dull moment with @zendaya no pun intended,” he wrote in his own Instagram Stories, adding, “Dear God, help me keep this little heffa safe cause she clumsy as hell.”

Zendaya later posted an image of the aftermath, writing “Baby’s first stitches lol back to never cooking again.”

So Zendaya could never hold her own with the chefs at Chicago’s The Beef. She can still take over Buffy the Vampire Slayer, long as she doesn’t accidentally stab herself with those stakes.

(Via Page Six)

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Kodak Black Was Arrested In Florida On A Pair Of Drug Charges

Just when Kodak Black was progressing upward in his rap career, the rapper once again finds himself in legal trouble. According to TMZ, the rapper was arrested in his home state of Florida on a pair of drug charges. Kodak was riding in a Dodge Durango on Friday when officers pulled him over for what they believed was an illegal window tint. Once his car was approached, officers say they smelled marijuana and decided to conduct a search of the vehicle. That search resulted in the discovery of 31 oxycodone pills and $74,960 in cash. Additionally, Kodak’s license and tags were expired.

As a result, Kodak was booked on two drug charges: possession of a controlled substance without prescription and trafficking with oxycodone. The incident comes after the rapper was arrested on trespassing charges earlier this year, but those charges were later dropped. Prior to that, Kodak Black’s criminal record includes a 2019 arrest on weapons charges where he lied on a background check in order to obtain a gun. That resulted in him being sentenced to 46 months in prison, a term that was later pardoned by former President Donald Trump.

Kodak’s other run-ins with the law include a 2018 arrest for grand theft and child neglect, a 2017 arrest for violating his probation and failing to complete an anger management class, and multiple accusations of sexual assault.

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

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Kanye West Calls Steve Lacy ‘One Of The Most Inspiring People On The Planet’ While Praising His New Album

This weekend is an exciting one for new releases thanks to some projects that were shared with the world. One of them is Steve Lacy’s long-awaited sophomore album Gemini Rights. The project is the follow-up to his Grammy-nominated 2019 debut Apollo XXI and it checks in at a brief yet extremely fulfilling ten songs with guest appearances from Joji and Foushee. Together with the release of Gemini Rights, Lacy shared a message about the project and it earned a special response from one of music’s biggest names.

Gemini Rights is outttt [crying emoji] this feels so surreal,” Steve wrote in his original message. “I can’t explain it. It’s a new feeling. I think I’ll be able to tell you about it in a couple months. But for now I’ll enjoy this newness. Thank you guys for all the love and support. I promise it doesn’t go unnoticed [bow in a heart emoji].” In response, Kanye West took the moment to praise both Steve and the new album. “Album is beautiful,” Kanye wrote in the comment section. “One of the most inspiring people on the planet.”

The comment from Kanye comes after he and Steve were photographed together at the former’s Donda livestream event last summer. When asked about his time there during an interview with GQ, Steve said simply, “It was cool, it was cool.”

You can view Kanye’s message to Steve in the post above.

Gemini Rights is out 7/15 via RCA Records. You can stream it here.

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Russell Westbrook Parted Ways With His Longtime Agent, But Reportedly ‘Never Requested A Trade’ From The Lakers

“Irreconcilable differences” have led to Russell Westbrook and his longtime agent, Thad Foucher, parting ways. In a statement given to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN on Friday night, Foucher indicated that he and Westbrook disagree on the best path forward for the Los Angeles Lakers’ point guard, with the Wasserman agent hinting that the difference stems from his belief that Westbrook should stay with the Lakers.

You can read Foucher’s entire statement here, but the following excerpt is where he implies that Westbrook wants to leave the team:

“Now, with a possibility of a fourth trade in four years, the marketplace is telling the Lakers they must add additional value with Russell in any trade scenario. And even then, such a trade may require Russell to immediately move on from the new team via buyout.

“My belief is that this type of transaction only serves to diminish Russell’s value and his best option is to stay with the Lakers, embrace the starting role and support that Darvin Ham publicly offered. Russell is a first-ballot Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame player and will prove that again before he is retired.

Foucher has represented Westbrook throughout his NBA career, making this a pretty stunning departure and an even more stunning statement. But despite that, Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times reports that Westbrook has never explicitly requested a trade from the Lakers, while Sopan Deb of the New York Times indicated that Westbrook liked a tweet in the aftermath of the news that seems instructive.

Westbrook has one year and approximately $47 million remaining on his contract.

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Musicians React To Comedian Jak Knight’s Untimely Death

Jak Knight, a comedian known for co-creating and acting on Peacock original series, Bust Down, has died at 28. In addition to Bust Down, Knight was a writer on shows like Blackish and Big Mouth, on the latter of which, he voiced DeVon. Although he proved to be a promising comedian, Knight was very much known and loved within the realm of music.

In 2018, Knight appeared in a live version of Zach Fox’s Bruh podcast, alongside rapper Amine. In one of his most iconic stand-ups, he hilariously detailed Chance The Rapper‘s career evolution and recounts a time when he saw the rapper perform at a music festival while on shrooms.

“I thought I was in The DaVinci Code, directed by Jordan Peele. This sh*t was crazy as hell,” he said in a Comedy Central special.

Following the news of his death, several musicians have taken to social media to mourn the loss of Knight.

“RIP to Jak Knight,” said Flying Lotus, “honestly was my fav comedian these days. Unapologetically bold and hilarious.”

https://twitter.com/flyinglotus/status/1548102870653800450?s=21&t=BpryIJhrGneI5kmTkq98Ew

Producer Kenny Beats also expressed sadness over Knight’s death, tweeting “Rip Jak I’m heartbroken.”
https://twitter.com/kennybeats/status/1548127265745014796?s=21t=BpryIJhrGneI5kmTkq98Ew

Television personality and rapper Steelo Brim, who once had Knight as a guest on his Wine And Weed podcast, said “Truly don’t know what to say but Jak Knight was & is the man. He will be forever missed and loved, lit up every room and was as pure as they come. F*ck this one hurts.

https://twitter.com/steelobrim/status/1548110906957082625?s=21&t=BpryIJhrGneI5kmTkq98Ew

A cause of death has not yet been confirmed for Knight.

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Jhene Aiko Is Glowing In Her First Official Maternity Photos

Fans of Jhene Aiko and Big Sean are still reeling over those baby bump photos that circulated over Fourth of July weekend. Both Aiko and Sean have remained relatively quiet on social media since news of the pregnancy broke, until today.

Earlier, Aiko took to Instagram to reveal the first official maternity photo.

In the picture, she is seen nude, tastefully covered by shadows of the sun, as an image of the earth appears in the background. Sean commented on the picture thanking fans for their support, and said that he “can’t wait” for the baby to arrive. Their child will be Aiko’s second child and Sean’s first.

So it looks like fans may have to wait a little bit longer for a follow-up to Aiko and Sean’s 2016 collaborative album, Twenty88. Sean confirmed that he and his longtime partner have been working on the album earlier this year, during an Instagram live session with R&B singer Queen Naija. He also confirmed that he is recording music of his own.

“I’m here working on a new album and new Twenty88, me and Jhené,” he said. “Sh*t, we’ve been working on it for a little bit… It’s coming along good, though.”

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LeBron On Why He Hates Boston Fans: ‘They Racist As F*ck’

LeBron James, by nature of being one of the very best athletes in the world, is no stranger to getting trash talk hurled at him by opposing fans. On a recent episode of The Shop, James was asked to pick the fanbase that takes things to a different level, and perhaps unsurprisingly, he singled out fans of the Boston Celtics.

When asked why he feels so strongly about Boston fans, James simply said “they racist as f*ck.”

“They will say anything, and it’s fine — I mean, f*ck, it’s my life, I’ve been dealing with it my whole life,” James said. “I don’t mind it, like, I hear it, if I somebody close by, I’ll check them real quick, I’ll move onto the game, they gonna say whatever the f*ck they wanna say. They might throw something on me, I got a beer thrown on me leaving the game.”

Maverick Carter then said Boston is the only place in the country where people wear “F*ck LeBron” t-shirts, which James joked were probably sold in the team shop. Even before he suited up for the Celtics’ historic rival, the Los Angeles Lakers, James’ NBA career featured numerous high-profile battles in Boston while he played for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat.

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Jay-Z Says He No Longer Charges For Guest Verses

It’s hard to get a feature from Jay-Z these days. It’s even harder to get an interview. But fortunately, Jay stopped by Kevin Hart’s Peacock talk show, Hart To Hart, to talk about how his career has evolved over the years.

One of the biggest revelations was the fact that he no longer charges for features. Jay, however, admitted that he is still very selective about who he collaborates.

“It’s mostly [based on] relationships,” Jay said. “It’s actually always been mostly relationships. Sometimes it’s talent and sometimes someone asks me to be on something. Pretty much every song that I’m on I’m asked to be on. I don’t ask people to be on their songs. I never charge.”

Jay also admitted that it can be hard to reject requests from other rappers, but says it’s better to be honest and transparent.

“I try to be straight up,” he said. “Sometimes it slips through the cracks. Sometimes I want to do it and my life is in a certain place and I’m movin’ and I can’t do it. But I typically try to be straight up with people. I don’t like to drag or like waste people’s time or hold them.”

In the interview, he also spoke about marriage, fatherhood, and his plans to retire eventually. He confirmed that he is not currently retired, he just hasn’t put out solo music in a while, as he “needed a break.”

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Parkland parents launch ‘NRA Children’s Museum’ with 52 school buses—all empty but one

When Joaquin Oliver was 12, he wrote a letter to gun owners imploring them to support background check legislation to help prevent gun violence in America. When he was 17, he was shot and killed in a hallway outside his creative writing class at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

Oliver’s parents, Manuel and Patricia, have been on a mission to raise awareness and reduce the influence of the gun lobby ever since. They founded the gun control advocacy organization Change the Ref and their latest initiative may be their most powerful yet.

gun violence, NRA, gun control

Manuel and Patricia Oliver’s son Joaquin was killed in the Parkland, Florida, school massacre in 2018.Courtesy of Change the Ref

On July 14, the Olivers took a mile-long convoy of 52 school buses—dubbed The NRA Children’s Museum—to Ted Cruz’s offices in Houston, Texas, to deliver Joaquin’s letter to him.

The empty seats on 51 of the buses represent the more than 4,368 children in the United States that the organization claims would have sat in them since 2020 had they not been killed by guns. The leading bus is filled with memorabilia of children killed in shootings—things like photos of the children, the clothing they wore or things they carried, such as the Nickelodeon backpack of a student from Santa Clarita, California, a girl scout sash from a student in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and a piece of construction paper artwork from a student in Newtown, Connecticut.


The reason for the buses representing child gun deaths since 2020 is that, according to the CDC, since that year, firearms have overtaken car accidents to become the leading cause of death in children and teens ages 1 to 19 in the U.S.

That fact is worth repeating. Since 2020, gun violence has been the leading cause of death for children and teens in America. More than car accidents. More than disease. That’s mind-blowing.

And the reason for heading to Ted Cruz first? Lawmakers in Texas lead the country in donations taken from the gun lobby, and among those lawmakers, Ted Cruz leads the pack.

gun violence, gun legislation, NRA

“To commemorate this horrific historic moment, we are showing American voters the toll these politicians have taken on our children’s lives with this all-too-real archive,” Manuel Oliver said in a statement. “And this is only the beginning. We will not stop with Sen. Ted Cruz. To every politician who has stood by, taken NRA money, and refused to listen to the people they represent: the museum is on the way to honor you next.”

“We want to display, for the voters who keep these politicians in office, the consequences of those choices. We want voters to remember which politicians are in the pocket of the NRA when they visit the polls in November,” added Patricia Oliver. “We urge everyone to join us in our mission to fight for every innocent soul lost to gun violence and to demand universal background checks on gun sales.”

Change the Ref requests that Sen. Cruz immediately renounce all future funding from the NRA and listen to the people’s will to enact legislation for universal background checks—commonsense gun legislation that most of his constituents, including those in his own party, support. The Olivers hope that their son’s letter will spark a realization that receiving political donations from gun lobbyists like the NRA is not worth an innocent child’s life.

Reasonable citizens everywhere share the same request and the same hope.