Australian rapper Masked Wolf is enjoying the success of his 2021 sleeper hit “Astronaut In The Ocean,” but he brought a different song to the UPROXX Sessions stage, injecting a little “Pandemonium” into his performance. Having already proven himself a capable performer in the past, his comfort level here reveals a veteran who is just getting started.
Masked Wolf has been going strong since 2018 when he debuted with the single “Speed Racer” on Teamwrk Records, where he released a string of solid singles, including “Astronaut In The Ocean.” “Astronaut” became his signature hit after becoming a viral favorite on TikTok, where it has soundtracked over 7.5 million videos to date. Its success there prompted its re-release in 2021, which led to it being certified 3x Platinum in its home country, and 2x Platinum here in the US, where it peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100. Masked Wolf followed up with the release of his debut album Astronomical last September and will undoubtedly look to build on that success in 2022.
Watch Masked Wolf’s UPROXX Sessions performance of “Pandemonium” above.
UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too.
Kendrick Lamar has a history of dropping new music in a live setting. Well, sort of… Back in 2014, when producer Flying Lotus closed out LA’s FYF Festival Lawn Stage on Sunday night, he dropped the Kendrick Lamar collaboration “Never Catch Me” for the first time ever in the middle of his performance, set to a dizzying three-dimensional visual display. For those who were there, it was a sublime moment hearing what would soon become one of the best tracks of the year. But back then, Kendrick Lamar wasn’t in attendance and his voice on the track more than did all the heavy lifting. Now at this Sunday’s Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show, when he takes the stage alongside Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, and Mary J. Blige at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, things could look a lot different.
According to radio host Ebro Darden, who co-hosts Apple Music’s Rap Life Review, Lamar might very well have a new song out in time to perform it on the biggest of all stages. In yesterday’s episode, Darden and co-hosts Nadeska and Lowkey were speculating about a new single from the “Humble” rapper when Darden begins to speak on what he’s just been informed. “What I’m reading here provided by our producer Sasha… the way this reads, it sounds like it’s confirmed that we will get a single from Kendrick Lamar before his performance,” Darden begins. “It says: ‘With the release of his single to be debuted ahead of his performance, what we know so far is that his next project will be the last project that he will release under Top Dawg Entertainment,’ which, we already knew that.”
It sounds like a press release was sent to the popular hip-hop show to put the information out there ahead of the Super Bowl and that come Sunday, Lamar could indeed be playing the song on stage.
Thursday’s NBA trade deadline was as wild a deadline as we’ve seen in years, as stars were on the move, headlined by the blockbuster James Harden-Ben Simmons deal, but they weren’t alone in big names changing rosters.
The Washington Wizards, who now will be without Bradley Beal for the rest of the season after wrist surgery, were willing to part with just about anyone other than Beal or Kyle Kuzma at the deadline, per reports, and jumped in the ring in a big way with under an hour to go. After sending Montrezl Harrell to Charlotte, the Wizards moved Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans to Dallas in exchange for Kristaps Porzingis and a second round pick, as the Mavericks decided to breakup the Doncic-Porzingis pairing that has had some tension in the past.
The Washington Wizards are trading Spencer Dinwiddie to the Dallas Mavericks, sources tell @TheAthletic@Stadium.
The Mavs are clearly banking on Dinwiddie refinding his form next to Doncic and hoping Bertans can give them the floor spacing juice they crave. Washington, meanwhile, takes on Porzingis in hopes that a change of scenery will also be good for him, and at least for this season, he’ll get a chance to be the lead option again with Beal on the sidelines.
It’s a bit of a surprise that the Mavs jump in with both feet like this in the trade waters, as they were solidly in fifth spot in the West, but they must think getting more offensive firepower is the answer around Doncic to make them a viable threat to make a deep postseason run.
The Charlotte Hornets have been tabbed as a potentially active team in the NBA’s trade market all year due to their relatively meager options at center. The team has primarily turned to steady veteran Mason Plumlee and the undersized PJ Washington in that role, but whenever a center’s name has been kicked around in trade rumors, it’s always seemed like Charlotte has been mentioned as a potential destination.
Perhaps, then, it’s unsurprising that Charlotte went out and acquired a center right before the NBA’s trade deadline on Thursday afternoon. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Hornets called up the Washington Wizards and made a move to acquire Montrezl Harrell.
Washington is finalizing sending Montrezl Harrell to Charlotte, sources tell @TheAthletic@Stadium.
The report was confirmed by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN and Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, who mentioned that the Wizards will receive Ish Smith, Vernon Carey, and a second-round pick in exchange for Harell.
Charlotte is acquiring Washington center Montrezl Harrell for Vernon Carey and Ish Smith, sources tell ESPN.
While Harrell is probably not going to help the Hornets all that much defensively — the team is 24th in defensive rating, so at the very least, they can’t get all that much worse — it’s hard not to be excited about what a player with his offensive profile can do alongside a guard like LaMelo Ball. Harrell came to the Wizards from the Los Angeles Lakers in the Russell Westbrook trade this past offseason, and has averaged 14.1 points and 6.7 rebounds in 24.3 minutes per game this year.
The Hornets sit in ninth place in the Eastern Conference at 28-28. The team is 3.5 games behind the Toronto Raptors for the 6-seed and boast a 2.5-game cushion above the Wizards for the 11-seed.
Ed Sheeran made a splash at the BRITs this year, taking the awards show stage to perform “Bad Habits,” but a harder-edged version for which he was joined by Bring Me The Horizon. It turns out Sheeran and the band are keen to work with each other more, as they’re apparently planning to work on a new song together.
Speaking with The Daily Star (as NME notes). Sheeran said, “We’re going to write a song together… Playing with Bring Me The Horizon was a dream. I got in touch with [singer Oli Sykes] and we were going to write together but then the pandemic happened, so we were in touch — I’ve been a fan for a long time. Oddly enough, that’s the kind of music I grew up listening to and had a Kerrang subscription and I listened to it constantly.”
“I actually said ‘Bad Habits’ would be a bit of a wet fart if I was just going up there and playing it normally. The song is EDM and they’ve taken it and make it a whole new thing. I was just like, you know what, these guitars are going to be great. It was a week’s turnaround — we emailed each other two weeks ago, recorded it a week ago and rehearsed it three days ago.”
This isn’t the first time Sheeran has expressed an interest in music heavier than his own, as he said last summer, “I was really into death metal as a kid. I listened to Cradle Of Filth and Slipknot and all that stuff. I’m not saying I could ever step into that world. I learned all those riffs on guitar as a kid. That’s something I’ve never thought about doing, but something I would not be opposed to creating.”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
The Indiana Pacers have been busy over the last week, as they’ve become one of the biggest sellers of the NBA trade deadline. They’ve already dealt Caris LeVert to the Cavs and Domantas Sabonis (and more) to the Kings, but weren’t done moving off of players for swings on young players and future draft assets.
It’s a deal that makes sense for both sides. Indiana gets a flyer in Smith as they need frontcourt depth behind Myles Turner — who appears to be staying put — and add a second rounder. Craig goes back to the best team in the West, who have plenty of center depth with Deandre Ayton, JaVale McGee, and Bismack Biyombo all making Smith expendable, while adding wing depth in the form of Craig, who already knows exactly what his role will be with the Suns.
On a day filled with major moves by the top of the East, the Suns stayed mostly put but this move helps them bolster their depth as they seek another Finals run.
Since premiering in 1999, Futurama has known three homes (Fox, Comedy Central, and soon, Hulu), and even during the initial creative-peak run, it was shifted all over the schedule. Take it from someone who lived the pain of new episodes of Futurama and King of the Hill being preempted by football: f*ck the Dallas Cowboys. One of the few consistencies through the animated show’s 140 episodes, including four direct-to-DVD films, is the voice cast. Billy West is always Fry, Professor Farnsworth, and Dr. Zoidberg; Katey Sagal is always Leela; and John DiMaggio is always Bender.
Deadlinereports that Bender is “currently being recast ahead of the first table read on Monday. The decision was made after DiMaggio’s negotiations with Futurama studio 20th Television Animation came to a standstill though there is a desire on both sides to have him rejoin the cast and reprise his role.” Since the news came out, DiMaggio, who also voices Jake the Dog on Adventure Time, has been retweeting ticked-off Futurama fans who are threatening to boycott the revival if he doesn’t return. Like so:
DiMaggio also commented on his possible return (or lack thereof) as Bender, tweeting, “Thanks for the concern and the props, everyone. I really appreciate it. Don’t worry, I’ll keep you posted, but until then… CHEESE IT! #bendergate.”
Thanks for the concern and the props, everyone. I really appreciate it. Don’t worry, I’ll keep you posted, but until then… CHEESE IT! #bendergate
Despite the news just breaking this morning, The View found time to tackle Maggie Haberman’s claims that White House sources told her Donald Trump would allegedly flush government documents down the toilet, clogging them in the process. Needless to say, the subject was a field day for The View panel as co-host Joy Behar fired off zingers about Trump being “anal retentive” while Ana Navarro went right for the jugular.
“I mean, I knew they were full of crap, but I didn’t realize it went this far,” Navarro quipped about the former administration.
BOOK CLAIMS DOCUMENTS CLOGGED WHITE HOUSE TOILET: With National Archive officials already asking the Justice Dept. to investigate former Pres. Trump’s handling of White House records, #TheView discusses reporting from journalist Maggie Haberman’s new book. https://t.co/qJYXyw0pD6pic.twitter.com/Om8NQQayza
In an interesting catch, the panel discussion noticed that flushing toilets has been an odd, recurring theme during Trump rallies. He’d often say people are complaining about how their toilets flush, which was a random thing to bring up. Via The Wrap:
“Well, he has some fascination with toilets, right? He’s mentioned it over and over again,” Hostin answered, referring to the numerous times the twice-impeached former President claimed during his rallies that people were flushing their toilets at home 10-15 times.
“He does,” Behar shot back. “Anal retentive, they call that.”
In between the jokes, Behar made it a point to mention that Trump has “categorically denied” flushing government documents down the toilet. However, The View had the benefit of former White House communicator Alyssa Farah filling in as a guest host and dropping some insights. While Farah says she never saw Trump flush documents or even the presidential bathroom during her time at the White House, she did reveal that her sources in Trump’s orbit have said that the former president is “terrified” of Haberman’s book.
Herschend Enterprises, partner owner of Dollywood and the nation’s largest privately owned themed attractions operations, announced on Feb 8th that it would cover 100% of tuition, fees, and books for employees to pursue further education.
Considering that the popular Rocky Mountain theme park currently has 11,000 employees (including seasonal and part time workers) that is quite a feat.
The initiative, Herschend’s GROW U., offers over 100 programs, many that focus on high-demand fields like business administration and leadership, culinary, finance, technology and marketing. The company will also provide employees up to $5,250 per year for additional programs in fields including engineering, hospitality, art design and human resources.
Needless to say, this kind of financial support can be life changing.
Andrew Wexler, CEO of Herschend Enterprises, defines the investment as the company’s “love culture in action.”
The CEO added, “we care about our employees’ personal and professional growth, because we believe that their futures should be grown with love, not loans.”
This kind of culture really does permeate. According to CNN, employees also receive access to Dollywood Family Healthcare Center, free meals for every work shift, and apprentice and leadership programs. And where other corporations like Chipotle and Best Buy have made contributions to employee education, it’s only a fraction compared to Herschend GROW U, according to the Washington Post.
Breaking Good News Alert:
Dolly Parton’s Dollywood Parks & Resorts has announced it will pay all tuition costs, fees, and books for employees who pursue higher education.
It includes all part-time, full-time, and seasonal employees from day one on the job.
Still, the fact that this is a growing trend feels promising. With over 36 well known companies already helping with tuition, and now with Herschend GROW U. making headlines, perhaps compassionate corporations are becoming the new standard.
The program launches Feb 24th, but is already giving us something to smile about.
When world champion gymnast Simone Biles opened up out about her struggles with mental health after dropping out of the Tokyo Olympics last summer, the world heard something we rarely hear from superstar athletes: I’m human, too.
It’s easy to see someone who excels at the top of their field, doing things no one has done before, as superhuman. We even use that word to describe their feats sometimes, but it’s important that we remember every person is a complex mix of mind, body and spirit. We know it takes an enormous amount of resilience and mental fortitude to make it to an international podium in any sport, but no one is immune to mental health ups and downs. And the top of the podium is sometimes where athletes feel those ups and downs the most intensely.
21-year-old Chloe Kim just won her second Olympic gold medal for the U.S. in the snowboard halfpipe at the Beijing Olympics, becoming the first woman to take home back-to-back gold medals in sport. But after she met that goal in PyeongChang in 2018, she began to question if it was all worth it. In fact, at one point, she even threw her first gold medal in the trash at her parents’ house.
“I hated life,” Kim told TIME. International fame had hit hard and fast. At 17, despite being known as a prodigy in the snowboarding world, Kim was used to living a normal teenage life. Suddenly, going to her favorite bakery to grab a bite to eat became an ordeal.
“The minute I come home, I can’t even go to my goddamn favorite place,” Kim said. “It makes you angry. I just wanted a day where I was left alone. And it’s impossible. And I appreciate that everyone loves and supports me, but I just wish people could understand what I was going through up to that point.”
She did fish her medal out of the trash, but the mental toll of high-pressure competition and overnight fame remained.
And it wasn’t just having all eyes on her that was the issue. Some of those eyes were accompanied by mouths spewing anti-Asian hate her way.
“I experience hate on a daily basis,” Kim wrote in an ESPN op-ed last April. She shared that she sees maybe 30 hate-filled messages a day, such as “You dumb Asian b—-. Kiss my ass.”
“I still don’t know how to talk about all of this,” she wrote. “It’s difficult to talk about these things. In snowboarding, all my friends are white and no one had these conversations.”
In a recent powerful video, Kim shared the role her father played in helping the shape the confidence and determination to become the Olympic champion she is today.
Kim shared that when she won her first X Games medal at 13, she started hiding parts of her identity—like the fact that she speaks Korean fluently—after people belittled her accomplishment because she’s Asian. She felt embarrassed by her heritage due to people’s responses, but now she feels guilty about how disrespectful that was to her dad who came to the U.S. to give his family a better life. Being in the spotlight at such a young age put her in an uncomfortable position in dealing with the racism that came her way, both internally and externally.
“I was expected to speak up and be an activist,” she wrote. “It was a lot of responsibility. I still don’t know how to talk about all of this. It’s difficult to talk about these things. In snowboarding, all my friends are white and no one had these conversations.”
In addition to—or perhaps because of—the racism, the sudden fame and burn-out from competition, Kim felt “an emptiness” after her gold medal win in PyeongChang. That’s when she decided to take a break from snowboarding to go to college at Princeton in the fall of 2019.
She couldn’t escape her fame, however, and the first part of the semester was rough. She’d frequently call home crying. Soon she started making friend who didn’t know much about her, however, which helped broaden her own horizons. Her time at Princeton also allowed her to see other driven, talented people struggling to succeed—and sometimes failing—which was good for for her, she told TIME.
“Everyone around me was falling apart when it came time to do an exam,” Kim said. “It’s a sh-t show. People are hiding away in the darkest part of the library until 3 in the morning, and then coming out like zombies at 7 and doing it all over again. That was great. It was just like, ‘I need this. I need to see other amazing people fall apart.’”
After the pandemic hit and in-person classes were canceled, Kim returned to snowboarding—and embraced therapy for her anxiety.
“It’s been a big improvement in my mental health,” she told Shape magazine. “I’m learning to open up more and communicate my feelings with people around me.”
And that’s part of what makes Kim’s victory in the Olympics so significant. It’s an inclusive victory for countless millions who work to overcome adversity, mental health challenges and the rigors of every day life. Very few of us will stand as Olympic champions but we can all appreciate Kim’s incredible journey as a person deserving of respect.
Now I am so proud to be Korean Americans,” she wrote on ESPN.com. “I was nervous to share my experiences with racism, but we need to hear more about these conversations. I’ve received so many messages from people saying they are inspired by me sharing what I’ve been through and that makes me feel hopeful, and like I can still do so much more.”
Thank you Chloe Kim. Spoken like a true champion.
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