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Just when you think the well of “Encanto” covers has run dry, guess again. There truly is no limit to the amount of bizarre and creative entertainment to be found on the internet.

Musician Jon Pumper hilariously reimagines the iconic “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” song by delving into a subject that continues to baffle ’90s kids and enrage astrologers to this very day: Pluto losing its planetary title.

Not to open up old wounds, but who can forget the day that our solar system went from having nine planets, to a measly eight? Pluto might have been demoted to “dwarf planet” (which in retrospect, still sounds pretty cool, right?), but people did not take its abdication lightly. Made for some pretty great memes though.

And hey, if you don’t recall any of the story, Pumper sums it all up pretty well in “We Don’t Talk About Pluto,” which feels like something between a “Weird Al” Yankovic video and an episode of “The Magic School Bus.”

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Pumper’s song waves its geek flag proudly with its pop culture references, and the musical composition matches the original perfectly, which I think we can all agree are quintessential components to a successful parody.

The consensus was pretty unanimous: people gave the video a 10/10.

“You did so good with this from the lyrics to the visuals and even nailing the overlapping choruses at the end,” one person wrote in the comments.

“We need more educational songs like this that are actually good,” another person noted.

Even those who came in skeptical had a change of heart.

“Really enjoyed this. I was afraid it wouldn’t flow but it did. And I love when you combined all the lines in the end and was clear,” said one person.

Can you believe that some youngsters don’t even know about this blemish in history? Sadly, it’s true. Just take it from this person:

“The kids I babysit don’t believe me when I say there used to be NINE planets. Now I feel old.”

But it turns out that maybe Pluto will get the last laugh after all, at least if this person is right:

“Fun fact: Some scientists are fighting to get Pluto back on the team, and he might be bringing enough friends, including some moons and asteroids, to bump the total amount of planets up to 150+!”

Either way, this zany video has given the infamous dwarf planet the respect it deserves.

By the way, Pumper clearly has a knack for teaching. You can check out his YouTube channel to find a plethora of fun piano tutorials here.

The people of Australia have dealt with Mother Nature’s worst over the past two years. Devastating drought, terrible wildfires and now catastrophic floods throughout Queensland and New South Wales. The waters have reached nightmarish heights and residents can’t evacuate fast enough, leaving many trapped and stranded on rooftops.

And yet, even in times of disaster, compassion perseveres.

A nonprofit group called Sikh Volunteers Australia provided free food and drinking water to families affected by the crisis, in an effort to show support and boost morale.

The task would not be easy. Four team members would have to drive 34 hours—over blocked bridges and flooded highways—to make it to the community of Lismore.

But faith would get them to their destination and once there, a warm, soothing dish was made of rice and soya curry “spiced to perfection,” according to SVA co-founder Jaswinder Singh in an interview with SBS News.

The curry was chosen both for its uplifting taste and nutritional value. Singh told Australian Community Media (ACM) it provides “a perfect balance of nutrition of protein, carbohydrates and other nutrients,” adding that, “we have been told that there is a food crisis from the last two days in those areas. So we want the people to eat healthy and get their energy back.”

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A video posted to the Sikh Volunteers Australia Twitter account shows just how much food was prepared. Multiple industrial sized pots and giant mixers, along with pounds upon pounds of potatoes. We can also see how focused and dedicated the volunteers are to put love and care into the comfort food.

Food preparation in progress for flood affected areas pic.twitter.com/yu8Gwme4UV

— Sikh Volunteers Australia (@AustraliaSikh) March 2, 2022

Australians have been touched by the incredible generosity and have reached out to share their gratitude across social media.

“Sikh Volunteer Australia are angels on Earth,” one person wrote.

Another noted how this is not the first time such kindness has been bestowed, commenting that “every time there is a disaster the Sikh community steps up. Every. Single. Time. Thank you so much for all you do.”

Providing food to groups in need is something the Sikh community often makes headlines for, but it’s an act that goes hand in hand with the religion’s principles. Langar is a long-practiced custom meant to create a communal kitchen for anyone in need, regardless of background, status or beliefs.

But there is one additional key ingredient that makes langar so special: As the food is prepared, divine words are chanted to ensure the food is blessed with good will.

After being on road for nearly 34 hours, Finally the SVA team has reached Lismore and is serving the affected communities. We have set up on 60 Ross Street Goonellabah. Anyone need support with food, may come to this location pic.twitter.com/MtcahkGD0O

— Sikh Volunteers Australia (@AustraliaSikh) March 2, 2022

Singh tells Manning River Times that taking the food on the road is giving the tradition a modern twist.

“The only difference is instead of serving the langar at the gurdwara [place of worship], we are taking it onto the vehicles and taking it onto the doorstep of the people in need,” he told MRT.

During times of crisis, human beings looking out for one another provides vital nourishment … in more ways than one. Thank you to the Sikh community for showing incredible empathy and authentic altruism.

To continue doing their fantastic work, Sikh Volunteers Australia is accepting donations through its website.

Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill (formally known as the Parental Rights In Education bill) continues to work its way through the state’s legislature, all while SNL‘s Kate McKinnon treated it as ridiculously as the backlash to the controversial bill would demand. The state’s mask-hating governor, Ron DeSantis, has continued to defend the bill’s content (as the bill’s nickname goes, it would prohibit “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity”), and the fallout has been, well, huge.

People wondered why Disney, which obviously has a huge presence in the state that houses Disney World, hasn’t said jack about the bill. Also, criticism landed upon how the conglomerate has donated to politicians who support the bill (a move denounced by Abigail Disney), and finally, CEO Bob Chapek has explained why people who were waiting for a statement only heard the sound of crickets. Via The Hollywood Reporter, Chapek asserted that corporate statements can be “counterproductive”:

[Y]ou deserve an explanation for why we have not issued a statement. We are going to have a more fulsome conversation about this at the company-wide Reimagine Tomorrow Summit in April, but I will preview that discussion now as it is so timely.

As we have seen time and again, corporate statements do very little to change outcomes or minds. Instead, they are often weaponized by one side or the other to further divide and inflame. Simply put, they can be counterproductive and undermine more effective ways to achieve change.

The “counterproductive” descriptor probably isn’t going to do much to convince LGBTQ+ Disney employees. To that end, Chapek declared that he “want[s] to be crystal clear” in that “I and the entire leadership team unequivocally stand in support of our LGBTQ+ employees, their families, and their communities.” He added that Disney’s working to be more inclusive. That, uh, is apparently part of why Minnie Mouse recently wore a pantsuit, but Chapek did concede that “the very need to reiterate that commitment [to inclusiveness] means we still have more work to do.”

(Via Hollywood Reporter)

Pamela Anderson has been taking back her narrative lately after she was recently portrayed in the Hulu series Pam & Tommy. The actress/model recently announced she would be working with Netflix to share her own story in her own words. Now, Anderson will be making her Broadway debut in the iconic musical Chicago.

Anderson will play Roxie Hart from April 12th to June 5th at the Ambassador Theater in New York City. “From Baywatch to Broadway. I am inspired by the unexpected,” Anderson said of the role. “This is it, and I will not hold back anymore. I am letting go. I am ready to see what I’m capable of. For Chicago, I’ll be putting all my cards on the table. I am doubling down — on me.”

The actress has been keeping a low profile over the last few years, playing a few cameo roles in various TV shows and movies. The world has found a renowned interest in Anderson after Hulu’s miniseries brought her life (and scandals) to light. In true Anderson fashion, her Chicago character Roxie Hart is known for her fair share of scandals (well, murder) and how she chooses to change the narrative surrounding the death of her lover.

Anderson added that playing Roxie will be a ‘sweet escape’ for the star. “Playing Roxie Hart is a dream fulfilled. Performing Fosse, you don’t have time to get in your head. You can’t dance, sing, and think at the same time. There is freedom, a unique joy in knowing it’s all about the work. Playing Roxie Hart is a sweet escape for me.”

Making the theater experience as immersive as possible is rarely a bad thing. Unless, of course, you bring live bats into the equation, which is exactly what happened during a showing of The Batman in Texas on Friday. While Robert Pattinson and Zoë Kravitz brought some long overdue sexiness to superhero films, a winged creature had other plans as it flew around the ceiling of an Austin theater, eventually prompting management to pause the film and offer refunds as it struggled to get the little guy out.

However, while those efforts were initially unsuccessful, some theatergoers were actually on board with the live bat action and stuck around to finish the film. Via KXAN:

“Local animal control was immediately contacted, and they have been overseeing the situation to ensure guest, associate and animal safety,” Heidi Deno, the general manager for Moviehouse & Eatery told KXAN.

The theater offered to give refunds, but a majority of the crowd opted to stay and watch the film, “bat and all,” according to the KXAN viewer who took the video.

As for how the bat got in, the theater believes it was a prank and will be stepping up its security and bag checks to make sure nobody else smuggles in a live bat and tries to make it watch Batman, which is admittedly, kind of funny. That said, nobody get the same idea for Spider-Man because spiders are the devil. Don’t even think about it.

You can see video of the live bat in action below. (WARNING: There’s an f-bomb dropped at the beginning.)

(Via KXAN)

Kanye West’s past nine solo studio albums (all of them except The College Dropout) have topped the Billboard 200 chart. He released his latest LP, Donda 2, last month, and unless something changes, it will break Ye’s No. 1 streak. Not only that, but it’s currently not allowed to appear on the chart at all.

Billboard notes that as of right now, Donda 2 is not eligible to appear on any of their charts. They explain:

“[T]he album is being sold with a device that can be used for other means besides the playing of the album. As such, the Stem [Player]/Donda package would fall within Billboard’s latest merch bundle policy, where albums sold with merchandise are not chart-eligible.

Since the Stem Player is a fairly new concept, however, people familiar with the matter from both Billboard and MRC say they plan to continue to monitor its evolution as it relates to chart eligibility.”

Currently, Donda 2 is only officially available via the Stem Player and has not yet appeared on a streaming platform or for sale in any other way. While the first Donda album was released on the Stem Player, it was also made available on streaming services, making it eligible for Billboard chart inclusion.

A video shared on social media over the weekend seems to show a captured Russian military commander admitting that soldiers have been lied to about the true reason for invading Ukraine.

Lieutenant Colonel Astakhov Dmitry Mikhailovich, along with two other soldiers, was taken captive by Ukrainian forces as Putin’s ongoing invasion of the country has begun to stall. Mikhailovich gave a statement to reporters, essentially apologizing for his country’s actions and revealing that his fellow soldiers have been “brainwashed” into believing they are liberating Ukraine from a non-existent fascist regime.

“This is genocide,” Mikhailovich said in a televised address (via The Daily Mail), explaining he only realized that Putin’s explanation for the all-out assault on the country was a lie when he saw his two favorite professional boxers take up arms for the resistance. Mikhailovich said Russian leaders told soldiers that “nationalists and Nazis had seized power” in the top levels of Ukraine’s government, a story he realized wasn’t true when he witnessed regular civilians fighting back against Russian military units and bombs being dropped on heavily-populated civilian cities.

“Obviously, this information was unilateral information,” the colonel said, admitting he was ready to “go to jail” for his part in the invasion. “I feel shame that we came to this country. I don’t know why we were doing it. We knew very little. We brought sorrow to this land.”

Though it’s likely that the captured commander issued these statements under some type of duress, they match previous sentiments expressed by other captured Russian soldiers. Mikhailovich ended his address by begging for mercy for his fellow soldiers in captivity and urged Russians currently fighting in the country to take a hard look at what Putin’s been telling them.

“You are in a tense situation, going against your own commander. But this is genocide,” he said. “Russia cannot win here anyway. Even if we go until the very end. We can invade the territory but we cannot invade the people.”

(Via The Daily Mail)

With their new video for “Roll The Dice,” Sunflower Bean put a bow on a two-part money heist story arc that they built on the previously released clip for “Who Put You Up To This?.” Both songs are from their upcoming album, Headful Of Sugar, which comes out on May 6th and has the band taking a cynical, no-holds-barred look at the world and operating on their own terms.

“Nothing in this life is really free,” Julia Cumming and Nick Kivlen sing in unison on “Roll The Dice.” Money flies amid debauchery, bar brawls ensue, and the band conclude the two-part visual motif.

The message is clear: “Almost everyone we know struggles with money,” the band said in a statement. “The traditional routes towards success and stability in America have severely narrowed. The only way to get ahead is to take big risks and roll the dice.”

Watch the video for “Roll The Dice” above and check out Sunflower Bean’s expanded tour dates below.

03/08 — Columbus, OH @ A&R Music Bar^
03/10 — Bloomington, IN @ The Bishop^
03/11 — Louisville, KY @ Zanzabar^
03/12 — St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway Nightclub^
03/14 — Austin, TX @ SXSW
03/15 — Austin, TX @ SXSW
03/16 — Austin, TX @ SXSW
03/17 — Austin, TX @ SXSW
03/19 — Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
03/20 — Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle
03/21 — Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall
03/30 — Cambridge, UK @ Junction 2
03/31 — Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club
04/01 — Manchester, UK @ Strange Waves Festival
04/02 — Glasgow, UK @ Stereo
04/04 — Newcastle upon Tyne, UK @ Newcastle University
04/05 — Nottingham, UK @ Rescue Rooms
04/06 — Birmingham, UK @ Mama Roux’s
04/07 — London, UK @ Electric Ballroom
04/09 — Bristol, UK @ Thekla
04/10 — Portsmouth, UK @ The Wedgewood Rooms
04/11 — Brighton, UK @ Concorde 2
04/29 — Albany, NY @ Empire Underground
04/30 — Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
05/05 — Washington, DC @ Union Stage
05/06 — Asbury Park, NJ @ Asbury Lanes
05/12 — New York, NY @ Webster Hall
05/14 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry
05/19 — Ferndale, MI @ The Loving Touch
05/20 — Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
05/21 — Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line
05/22 — Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon
05/24 — Grand Rapids, MI @The Pyramid Scheme
05/25 — Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
05/26 — Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
06/01 — San Diego, CA @ Music Box SD+
06/02 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre+
06/04 — San Francisco, CA @ The Independent+
06/07 — Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios+
06/08 — Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre+
06/09 — Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile+
06/11 — Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theatre

* with Empath
^ with Barrie
+ with Palehound

Headful Of Sugar is out 5/6 via Mom + Pop. Pre-order it here.

Snoop Dogg is officially joining FaZe Clan. He will be a member of their board of directors, and also talent. This means that we may get to see Snoop Dogg do some really fun collaborations with other members of FaZe Clan as well as be a part of the rising esports brand. FaZe is one of the most popular names out there and Snoop joining them only makes sense when you consider that he’s always had at least some involvement in the world of video games.

Snoop has his own Twitch channel, has appeared in multiple games over the years, and is someone that is always trying to be on the cutting edge of what’s cool and new.

“It only makes sense to partner with FaZe Clan as both a team member and on the Board of Directors,” Snoop Dogg said in a release. “The youth identifies with their brand and that’s something my son Cordell knew, which is why he brought us together.”

“As I’ve been watching what FaZe Clan has been building in the gaming space, I knew there was a natural connection with what my dad has been doing,” Cordell Broadus said. “When I look at the two brands, I was inspired by the synergy they could create so I brought them together in this partnership. I can’t wait for the world to see what we are about to do.”

This is a partnership that is going to not only allow Snoop Dogg and FaZe Clan to do some really cool things in the world of video games but use their combined platforms to help out their communities. Beyond becoming a talent
member of FaZe Clan, Snoop Dogg will also launch a community outreach program centered around charitable activities that support youth. An example of the two working together actually occurred during Super Bowl weekend when FaZe members played in a co-branded FaZe Clan x NFL flag football game and for each team’s participation, and $25,000 per team was donated to youth sports. FaZe Clan’s donation went to Snoop Dogg’s Youth Football League.

After 2018’s And Nothing Hurt, Spiritualized announced their ninth studio album, the aptly-titled Everything Was Beautiful, which was set to come out on February 25 of this year. The lead single was an epic, nearly seven-minute song “Always Together With You” that stayed true to their ethereal, out-of-body-experience type of sound. There was also the folky “Crazy.” The album, though, was pushed back; it’s now set to arrive on April 22. The newest single, “The Mainline Song,” is out today.

The track is lengthy as well, approaching six minutes, and J Spaceman’s vocals don’t enter until the second half. There are layers upon layers of sound and clamor; there are noises like simmering and echoing, and it all makes up a kind of boisterous celebration. It’s hard to tell what instruments are involved, especially because the whole album has 16 different instruments throughout the songs. Spaceman also employed more than 30 musicians and singers, making this album less of a piece of music by one band but more of a collaborative effort by an orchestra. Everything Was Beautiful was made during the pandemic, when Spaceman was experiencing what he calls “beautiful solitude.” The album so far, though, sounds far from lonely or isolated; it feels intact with humanity and extremely connected.

Listen to “The Mainline Song” above.