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In a turn of events that will surprise absolutely no one, the CEO of Cyber Ninjas, the auditing company that Trump used to oversee a recount in Arizona, is now reportedly in debt to the tune of $2 million.

Via VICE, Doug Logan, who’s in charge of the Florida-based company that Arizona’s Republican-controlled Senate picked to head up a recount in Maricopa County, is now claiming the process left him bankrupt. The audit took five months to complete and was heavily supported by voter fraud conspiracy theorists and MAGA followers. Despite Logan’s company having no experience in auditing elections — and no legal authority to challenge the results should they find evidence of a bad count — Republicans initially backed the organization’s efforts, covering the costs of renting the venue for the recount and providing around-the-clock security. Logan was able to raise even more money from Trump supporters who donated nearly $6 million to the effort.

Despite all this, he’s now saying that he’s $2 million in the hole, telling misinformation spreader Nick Moseder that he has no other means of income. Moseder revealed all this on his Telegram channel while saying, “I believe he was anticipating more audits to make up for his losses and kept being reassured, ‘don’t worry about the money, America has your back.’”

He went on to try to garner sympathy for Logan, who just celebrated the birth of his 12th child. “I personally think it’s a tragedy that Doug Logan sacrificed months with his pregnant wife and 11 kids (now 12) to put his business and reputation on the line,” Moseder wrote. “All of that work, risk, and sacrifice to have come out the other side being called a traitor, and to be 2.1 million dollars in debt, with a business whose reputation will forever be branded ‘right-wing conspiracy company.’”

You know what might have saved him a lot of grief? Not operating a right-wing conspiracy company and trying to reverse the results of an already-certified election.

(Via VICE)

The Chicago Bears have lost five straight games after a 3-2 start to the season and, with seven games remaining, the odds of a return to the playoffs seem extremely low in the Windy City. The offense, in particular, has appeared inept during the losing streak and given that is supposedly the area of expertise for head coach Matt Nagy, fans in Chicago are once again calling for a coaching change.

Some form of “Fire Nagy” has become a ubiquitous presence not just at Bears games, but pretty much any sporting event in Chicago — one broke out on Monday night during the Bulls’ blowout loss to the Pacers in the United Center.

One of the unfortunate side effects of being a head coach of an NFL team is that your employment status is constantly under review by every fan and the depth of the impact of someone being fired is not often considered or cared about by fans. Case in point, Nagy’s son plays football at Lake Forest High School in the North Shore suburbs of Chicago and during a game this weekend, the opposing student section of Cary-Grove High School broke out the “Fire Nagy” chants towards Lake Forest.

That resulted in an apology being issued from Cary-Grove, calling on its students to “reflect and correct” their actions.

It is a reminder of the family side of coaching firings, which certainly come with the territory, but it doesn’t make it any easier on a kid who has to hear people calling for his dad to get fired in the middle of his own football game. As for Nagy’s status as coach of the Bears, it seems his tenure likely will be ending soon, with a report claiming he’ll be let go after the Bears play the winless Lions on Thanksgiving regardless of the outcome.

In addition to having a gorgeous voice and some questionable world views, Atlanta R&B revivalist Summer Walker is also pretty well-known for her astonishing collection of tattoos, which range from an ice cream cone on her clavicle to an array of messages and names adorning her neck and face. Her latest addition to that area is turning heads on Twitter, not just because of its placement, but also because of what it says: Her new boyfriend’s name, Larry.

Look, no judgment here but that could potentially get awkward in the future. While we wish Summer well in her relationship, many folks couldn’t help but remember that old superstition about never getting a lover’s name tattooed, lest you break up and have to explain it to people (or get it removed). That effect probably multiplies when that tattoo is anywhere above the neck, where many folks still find body art to be pretty questionable as well despite the phenomenon’s growing prominence in the hip-hop world.

Then, there’s just the fact that the gentleman’s name is Larry. No offense to anyone bearing that appellative, but I can’t be the only one who immediately thinks of The Floaters’ “Float On” — and it looks like fans on Twitter are having a lot of fun with the name too, sending it to the trending topics as only a shared sense of disbelief can. Especially in light of Walker just dropping an album of fed-up anthems (called Still Over It, no less), let’s all hope that this Larry can hold up his end of the relationship, lest her next album features his name as a song title.

Ever since it was announced, Bel-Air has promised a gritty, dramatic take on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air sitcom that rocketed Will Smith to super-stardom, and the new teaser released by Peacock definitely sets the tone. As Smith delivers a spoken word rendition of the Fresh Prince theme, the teaser introduces Jabari Banks who will take on the role of Will in the reboot series.

As the new Will falls backwards into a swimming pool, familiar objects start to float by him. The dice in the mirror from the original series cab, a basketball from his old life playing out by the school, and Will can even be seen sporting the same Jordans worn by Smith in the NBC sitcom. But a new object starts to float by: A crown, which leads the new Will to a throne where he can look at his kingdom because he’s finally there.

Here’s the official synopsis:

Set in modern-day America, Bel-Air is a serialized one-hour dramatic analogue of the 90’s sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” that leans into the original premise: Will’s complicated journey from the streets of West Philadelphia to the gated mansions of Bel-Air. With a reimagined vision, Bel-Air will dive deeper into the inherent conflicts, emotions and biases that were impossible to fully explore in a 30-minute sitcom format, while still delivering swagger and nods to the original show.

Bel-Air starts streaming on Peacock in 2022.

Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels, but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.

Every week, Uproxx is rounding up the best new indie music from the past seven days. This week we got the hotly anticipated new album from Ovlov, another new solo single from Eddie Vedder, and the official low-down on the massive forthcoming double album from Big Thief. Check out the rest of the best new indie music below.

While we’re at it, sign up for our newsletter to get the best new indie music delivered directly to your inbox, every Monday.

Ovlov – Buds

Ovlov is a band’s band — one of those bands that you might not have heard of at first, but the members of your favorite band probably love. The Connecticut outfit’s latest effort Buds is their first full-length effort since 2018’s Tru, and is comprised of Ian Cohen described for Uproxx as “eight tastefully tattered songs breezing by in less than a half-hour.”

Dan Campbell – Other People’s Lives

The Wonder Years’ Dan Campbell is no stranger to embodying someone else’s life — just listen to his character study project, Aaron West & The Roaring Twenties. But, Other People’s Lives, Campbell’s first proper solo release, is different, telling the stories of real people who commissioned him to write songs for their weddings, or to have as a keepsake. It was an experiment that Campbell began during the height of the pandemic, and resulted in some of his most personal and touching work to date.

Eddie Vedder – “The Haves”

Earlier this year, Eddie Vedder announced Earthling, his sophomore solo album and his first since 2011’s Ukelele Songs. Originally announced without a release date, Vedder has now declared that the album is officially due in February, and dropped a brand new single called “The Haves.” The new track “features a foundation of piano and acoustic guitar and becomes increasingly grandiose as it progresses,” writes Derrick Rossignol for Uproxx.

Big Thief – “Time Escaping”

Big Thief spent five months working on their new album, always on the move between Upstate New York, California’s Topanga Canyon, the Colorado Rockies, and then Tucson, Arizona, to try and evoke different sounds and inspiration. We’ve already heard a handful of previews from the resulting 20-track double album Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You, and “Time Escaping” might be the most intriguing, as it “came out of the natural psychedelia of Topanga Canyon,” according to Adrian Spinelli for Uproxx.

Petey – “Perfect Teeth”

Just a few months after releasing his debut album Lean Into Life, Petey decided to tack a new song onto the end. “Perfect Teeth” is a minimal piano and guitar arrangement that seems to fit pretty seamlessly into the album’s overarching themes and sound. “It’s a song about accepting a dissociative state as a new normal and just going with it,” Petey said in a statement.

Talker – “Summerlin”

Talker’s new track “Summerlin” is a classic breakup song. It’s supposedly the fasted song that LA-based artist Celeste Tauchar has ever written, coming together in less than an hour as Tauchar reveled in the constant reminders of the lost relationship. Sonically, “Summerlin” is comprised of nothing more than a hi-fi acoustic guitar and Tauchar’s enveloping vocals, before more layers and soundscapes are added to keep building the world of the song.

Ryan Pollie – “Out Of It”

Ryan Pollie’s new song “Out Of It” is a tribute to a lost era. Described in a statement as “a 1977 E.L.O.-Inspired romp about new love and driving up the Angeles Crest,” the song is built around a piano and string melody as Pollie sings in a falsetto. The video also features Pollie signing next to a puppet, which was similarly “inspired by all the times in the ’70s and ’80s when rock stars would sing a lot with puppets? Like super frequently!”

Career Woman – “Not A Betty”

I’ve really been enjoying the new tracks from Career Woman, and “Not A Betty” might be the best of all of them. The song is about Melody Caudill’s complicated relationship with identity, specifically the term “Betty,” which has been used to describe certain people throughout history (girl next door, female skateboarder, housewife), but still doesn’t feel like it describes Caudill perfectly. Built upon driving percussion and distorted guitars, the song and its story are very hard not to love.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Given that a typical day of being Donald Trump usually includes spewing a ton of bulls**t and acting in an often dangerously unhinged way, it seems like it would take a lot to make the former president flinch. But as Newsweek reports, even Trump—like the rest of us—was horrified when, on November 19, 2020, the world witnessed Rudy Giuliani literally melting right in front of us. “Oh my God, this is just like a freak show,” one White House staffer reportedly said.

In I Alone Can Fix It, a new book by Carol D. Leonnig and Philip Rucker, a White House staffer confided in the authors that the 45th president was taken aback as a seemingly frenzied Rudy carried on for nearly an hour and 40 minutes—about as long as it would take you to watch Reservoir Dogs—about election fraud and the corrupt media, who were fortunately there to capture every dripping moment of History’s Most Bizarre Press Conference, as hair dye poured down his face from his head, like a human oil spill.

The headlines practically wrote themselves for this display of utter insanity, which many people on Team Trump determined to be their last licks at convincing anyone who wasn’t already on the then-president’s side to come over to their way of thinking. According to Newsweek, even Lindsey Graham, who had already begun trying to convince Trump that concession was his best move, thought it prudent to call him and again attempt “to ease Trump toward acceptance of defeat.”

As William M. Arkin wrote for Newsweek:

Trump himself was “unsettled” by the hair dye spectacle and the media mockery, according to Leonnig and Rucker.

From then on, the president subtly shifted to trying to convince his supporters that he still had a number of different pathways to overcome the apparent election loss: that no matter what the “lamestream media” was saying, supporters were right to believe that democracy was in peril and that there were conspiracies all around. As the White House increasingly hollowed, with some leaders quarantining after COVID exposures and others looking for post-administration jobs, President Trump stayed in the Oval Office, working the phones and tweeting, more and more isolated in who he talked to, uninterested in the presidency or in governing.

The last defense, Trump increasingly argued, rested with “the people,” those behind him who now had it on their shoulders to save the nation.

Which was probably much less toxic than whatever was all over Rudy’s shoulders at the end of that presser.

(Via Newsweek)

Taylor Swift just dropped the rerecorded version of her 2012 album Red and fans were poised to support the singer in light of the legal battle for her masters. The buzz around Red (Taylor’s Version) led to it debuting at the top of the charts and gave her her tenth No. 1 album. But the fan-favorite on the project was definitely the extended version of the song “All Too Well,” which clocks in at 10 minutes and 13 seconds. The song landed at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart this week, making it the longest song to ever top the charts.

Swift’s “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” broke the chart record previously held by Don McLean’s “American Pie,” which is eight minutes and 37 seconds. McLean had held the record since the track’s 1972 release, so he commended Swift on her impressive achievement. In a statement given to Billboard, McLean said:

“There is something to be said for a great song that has staying power. ‘American Pie’ remained on top for 50 years and now Taylor Swift has unseated such a historic piece of artistry. Let’s face it, nobody ever wants to lose that #1 spot, but if I had to lose it to somebody, I sure am glad it was another great singer/songwriter such as Taylor.”

Of course, Swift isn’t the only pop star to record long versions of a song before being told to cut it back to a more radio-friendly length. Ahead of the release of her anticipated album 30, Adele said her hit track “I Drink Wine” was originally 15 minutes long. “[The label] was like, ‘Listen, everyone loves you, but no one’s playing a 15-minute song on radio,’” Adele said in an interview.

The 64th Annual Grammy Awards are not too far away now, as the 2022 ceremony is set to air on January 31 on CBS. Ahead of then, though, the Recording Academy has unveiled its list of nominees. (As a reminder, the eligibility window for the 2022 Grammys is from September 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021, so only works released during that period are eligible for recognition.)

Check out the full list of this year’s Grammy nominees below.

Record Of The Year
ABBA — “I Still Have Faith In You”
Jon Batiste — “Freedom”
Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga — “I Get A Kick Out Of You”
Justin Bieber — “Peaches” Feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon
Brandi Carlile — “Right On Time”
Doja Cat — “Kiss Me More” Feat. SZA
Billie Eilish — “Happier Than Ever”
Lil Nas X — “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”
Olivia Rodrigo — “Drivers License”
Silk Sonic — “Leave The Door Open”

Album Of The Year
Jon Batiste — We Are
Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga — Love For Sale
Justin Bieber — Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe)
Doja Cat — Planet Her (Deluxe)
Billie Eilish — Happier Than Ever
HER — Back Of My Mind
Lil Nas X — Montero
Olivia Rodrigo — Sour
Taylor Swift — Evermore
Kanye West — Donda

Song Of The Year
Ed Sheeran — “Bad Habits”
Alicia Keys and Brandi Carlile — “A Beautiful Noise”
Olivia Rodrigo — “Drivers License”
HER — “Fight For You”
Billie Eilish — “Happier Than Ever”
Doja Cat — “Kiss Me More” Feat. SZA
Silk Sonic — “Leave The Door Open”
Lil Nas X — “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”
Justin Bieber — “Peaches” Feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon
Brandi Carlile — “Right On Time”

Best New Artist
Arooj Aftab
Jimmie Allen
Baby Keem
Finneas
Glass Animals
Japanese Breakfast
The Kid Laroi
Arlo Parks
Olivia Rodrigo
Saweetie

Best Dance/Electronic Recording
Afrojack and David Guetta — “Hero”
Ólafur Arnalds — “Loom” Feat. Bonobo
James Blake — “Before”
Bonobo and Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs — “Heartbreak”
Caribou — “You Can Do It”
Rüfüs Du Sol — “Alive”
Tiësto — “The Business”

Best Dance/Electronic Album
Black Coffee — Subconsciously
Illenium — Fallen Embers
Major Lazer — Music Is The Weapon (Reloaded)
Marshmello — Shockwave
Sylvan Esso — Free Love
Ten City — Judgement

Best Rap Performance
Baby Keem — “Family Ties” Feat. Kendrick Lamar
Cardi B — “Up”
J. Cole — “My Life” Feat. 21 Savage and Morray
Drake — “Way 2 Sexy” Feat. Future and Young Thug
Megan Thee Stallion — “Thot Sh*t”

Best Melodic Rap Performance
J. Cole — “Pride Is The Devil” Feat. Lil Baby
Doja Cat — “Need To Know”
Lil Nas X — “Industry Baby” Feat. Jack Harlow
Tyler The Creator — “Wusyaname” Feat. YoungBoy Never Broke Again and Ty Dolla Sign
Kanye West — “Hurricane” Feat. The Weeknd and Lil Baby

Best Rap Song
DMX — “Bath Salts” Feat. Jay-Z and Nas
Saweetie — “Best Friend” Feat. Doja Cat
Baby Keem — “Family Ties” Feat. Kendrick Lamar
Kanye West — “Jail” Feat. Jay-Z
J. Cole — “My Life” Feat. 21 Savage and Morray

Best New Age Album
Will Ackerman, Jeff Oster and Tom Eaton — Brothers
Stewart Copeland and Ricky Kej — Divine Tides
Wouter Kellerman and David Arkenstone — Pangaea
Opium Moon — Night + Day
Laura Sullivan — Pieces Of Forever

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
Cinema — Josh Conway, Marvin Figueroa, Josh Gudwin, Neal H Pogue and Ethan Shumaker, engineers; Joe LaPorta, mastering engineer (The Marías)
Dawn — Thomas Brenneck, Zach Brown, Elton “L10MixedIt” Chueng, Riccardo Damian, Tom Elmhirst, Jens Jungkurth, Todd Monfalcone, John Rooney and Smino, engineers; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer (Yebba)
Hey What — BJ Burton, engineer; BJ Burton, mastering engineer (Low)
Love For Sale — Dae Bennett, Josh Coleman and Billy Cumella, engineers; Greg Calbi and Steve Fallone, mastering engineers (Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga)

Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical
Jack Antonoff
Rogét Chahayed
Mike Elizondo
Hit-Boy
Ricky Reed

This post is being updated.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Tanya Whitaker’s life mantra is a large part of why she’s so driven to help those in need in her community of Clinton, Maryland. It boils down to a Gilbert Young painting called “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother.”

“I knew I needed to do something to help break down systemic barriers and build bridges for not only the underprivileged, but the underserved,” Tanya tells Upworthy. “I am assisting my brother in our community.”

Tanya has been working to lift up underserved communities in almost every aspect of her life. She works in the career and technical education department for the District of Columbia’s State Superintendent of Education, and helps students realize goals they didn’t even know were possible. That work informed the development of her nonprofit, Skills Today Advance Tomorrow Development Center (STAT DC), which aims to “advance the economic mobility and social progress in low and moderate-income communities,” she explains.

Even before starting STAT DC, Tanya felt compelled to help people have access to what they need, regardless of their circumstances. This became particularly clear to her during the pandemic, which left so many more people in need of food and/or shelter. “It has been my experience through this pandemic that all economic lines have been blurred,” she says.

One thing that really stood out to her is how many children went hungry during the pandemic because schools were closed.

“America was faced with the fact that most school-aged children were getting most of their nutritional needs from the school,” explains Tanya. “And without that outlet to tap into, parents were forced to get into food lines that they never thought would be part of their daily or weekly needs.”

In response to the need she saw, Tanya created a sizable network of volunteers to feed the homeless in her community. Just like in her day job, she’s the manager making it all happen, from organizing donations, deliveries and all the other working parts it takes to carry out such a gargantuan task on a regular basis. “I have such an awesome group of dedicated volunteers,” says Tanya. “This could not be done to this magnitude without such a group.” Even her 78-year-old father is involved.

Tanya Whitaker (left)Photo courtesy of TD Bank

She often doesn’t have enough funds to cover the costs of her food distribution program. Thanks to a donation from TD Bank from their #TDThanksYou campaign, however, she should be able to keep her work going through the holidays — when food insecurity and homelessness are most prevalent in the U.S. “This directly impacts the daily operation of the food distribution. What the public does not see is the day-to-day expenses that we incur to make this happen,” says Tanya.

TD Thanks You is TD Bank’s annual campaign that aims to bolster its customers, colleagues and communities by giving back to them in meaningful ways. This year, the 2021 #TDThanksYou campaign is highlighting stories of people who are spreading positivity and optimism in their communities without asking for anything in return. Tanya’s work certainly seems to fit the bill.

Tanya’s team distributes food every Thursday, but that means organization and packing of food has to begin Tuesday. Food is assembled into sections, non-perishables, meat, dairy, frozen food and produce. Thursdays tend to be the busiest days because they typically get a surprise batch of food that needs to be sorted. After all the food is sectioned out, they start assembling it into bags and prepare those bags for distribution.

Tanya’s been able to keep food distribution efforts of this magnitude going with the help of several businesses. And she made those connections by literally knocking on doors.

One relationship came about when she realized a nearby mall, and its parking lots, had been sitting unused. “I drove around the parking lot until I found a security office door. I knocked on what seemed to be an abandoned, empty room, and met my wonderful angel, Ms. Carolyn Martin, the property manager for the Landmark Mall’s division for Howard Hughes Corporation.”

Tanya explained her mission to feed the homeless, and the next day, Ms. Martin welcomed her to use one of the mall’s parking lots free of charge.

“It is imperative that we, as socially responsible individuals, not wait on government programs or a ‘knight in shining armor’ to come to the rescue,” says Tanya.

People like Tanya use compassion and fervor to fight food insecurity, homelessness and economic inequality every day. They’re not waiting for a “knight” to come to the rescue; they just pick up the proverbial sword themselves.

In case you missed it: Retired NBA star Iman Shumpert is now a champion in two sports, basketball and ballroom dancing. The former Brooklyn Net won the 30th season of the dance competition show Dancing With The Stars with his professional partner Daniella Karagach, becoming the only NBA player in the show’s history to qualify for the finals and to win the competition.

Online, though, some have begun to credit his impressive win (in week 6 of 10, he and Karagach scored a perfect 40 in the contemporary dance category) to his marriage to R&B singer/dancer/choreographer/director/producer Teyana Taylor. The two share two children, have appeared in many of Taylor’s videos together, and also star in a reality show on VH1, Teyana And Iman. With her impressive list of accomplishments, as well as her expertise in the field of dance, fans came together to joke that her stern tutelage was a big contributor to Shump’s success, making her name trend on Twitter in the process.

Of course, considering what the response would have been if were the roles reversed, no one should have a problem with the jokes, as men are often credited for the accomplishments of their famous female partners (sometimes, headlines erase their partners’ names entirely, reducing women to just athletes’ wives and girlfriends). If we can poke a little fun at a rich and famous athlete and the patriarchy at the same time, I’d call that a win-win for everybody.

Check out more of fans’ responses to Iman’s win below.