When I Am Legend hit theaters in 2007, the film shattered box office records by being the highest grossing non-Christmas movie released in December. However, the movie’s $77 million opening weekend apparently wasn’t good enough for Will Smith at the time. While appearing on the latest episode of Apple TV’s The Oprah Conversation, the blockbuster star revealed that he had such an unhealthy fixation with I Am Legend‘s performance that his producing partner, James Lassiter, actually hung up on him.
“I’m excited for 30 seconds, and then my mind drifts and I say to J, ‘Hey, why do you think we missed 80?” Smith told Oprah Winfrey. “He said, ‘What?’ And I said, ‘No, it was 77, do you think if we would have adjusted the ending? Because I wanted the ending to feel more like Gladiator.’ He’s like, ‘It’s the biggest opening in history, ever. What are you talking about?’ I’m like, ‘J, I get that, I’m just asking why do you think we missed the 80?’ And it’s the only time he ever hung up on me.”
As Oprah expressed how much she loved that someone actually hung up on Smith, the actor laughed and said that the incident demonstrated the “subtle sickness of material success.”
For Lorde fans who wanted more Solar Power, today is a good day, as Lorde dropped a deluxe edition of the album. The expanded release comes with a pair of new songs: the minimal and melodic “Helen Of Troy” and the similar but more rhythmic “Hold No Grudge.”
“These songs were fun explorations on the album journey. They didn’t quite fit into the tracklist for whatever reason but they’re both big tunes. [‘Helen Of Troy’] is just me talking trash to make Jack [Antonoff] laugh, basically. We wrote it super quickly in the tiniest room at Westlake where we did a bunch of [Melodrama] and it was fun the whole time. It’s super off the cuff lyrically, almost ad-libbed, and you can hear me starting to figure out some album themes — ‘So I took a happy face, and it’s coming on like a charm / I don’t wanna get lost, I wanna worship the sun / and if you want, you can come’.
[‘Hold No Grudge’] is a sort of composite portrait of when relationships turn sour, being trapped in the ice but remembering the warmth. Every couple lines, the person I’m singing about changes; one minute it’s a childhood friend, next a crush or a colleague. When this happens to me, I find myself hyper-aware of the space where the closeness used to be, my tongue finding it over and over like the socket of a lost tooth. I came to the conclusion that when it comes to holding grudges, I am just not that b*tch. ‘Acting my age, not my horoscope / guess that’s growing up.’ She’ll drink to that.”
Listen to “Helen Of Troy” above and find “Hold No Grudge” below.
We were promised a return to normal. Or, actually, we probably weren’t. But it sure felt like with the defeat of Donald Trump and the vaccine rollout and a stream of festival and tour announcements, that by the fall of 2021, we would be back to some version of normal. But that’s definitely not how it has felt. Instead, we keep redefining a new normal, adjusting our expectations to the reality that many people won’t be getting vaccinated, that indoor masks are here to stay, that safety from Covid is not a guarantee, regardless of the actions we take.
That’s all to say that the return of Outside Lands to Golden Gate Park in San Francisco wasn’t a one-for-one replica of the festival of old. After undergoing multiple postponements due to the pandemic, the fest finally returned to action more than two years after its 2019 installment, shifting from its typical mid-summer dates to Halloween weekend. Funny enough, the weather on the west side of San Francisco really isn’t that different any time of year, so aside from the costumes that grew denser as the weekend went on, the date switch had little effect on the actual feeling of the festival.
So what was different? There were vaccine/testing checks, all done efficiently using the Clear app, utilizing wristbands that made entry a breeze, even better than before the pandemic. There were mask requirements indoors, and despite general mask recommendations for the rest of the grounds, a good portion of the crowd opted to enjoy the crisp, cool air. There were also more lineup changes than usual, most notably Young Thug canceling a set Saturday evening on the main stage, which isn’t exactly uncommon in a normal year, and should only be more common as everything from supply chain issues to general health affect touring.
Philip Cosores
But mostly, Outside Lands 2021 felt like the return to normal we’ve been craving, the type of place you can go and temporarily forget about the horrid previous 18 months. Sunday closer Tame Impala exemplified that with their multisensory experience around their pre-pandemic offering, The Slow Rush. Seeing the fans in the front row absolutely lose their shit with the faux commercial for the drug Rushium — some clearly questioning whether the psychedelic video was druggy in production or just druggy because they were, in fact, on drugs — was equally hilarious and endearing. The band’s decision to announce that Tame Impala had been replaced by The Wiggles, and then showing up dressed like the kids’ entertainers for their Halloween set, only added to the joyous insanity of it all. But frills aside, Tame Impala was the act of the weekend that best bridged the fest’s dueling demographics, where OSL veterans and the next generation of Zoomers could enjoy one of contemporary rock’s best bands together.
Lizzo’s infectious personality also managed to unite the OSL audience; she’s the kind of pop star that can attract a crowd out of sheer curiosity as much as because of actual attachment to the music. And it’s a good thing, because witnessing a Lizzo concert is to become a fan, with the catchy tunes joining forces with a captivating stage presence that just screams stardom. Her rise from daytime small stages at festivals to the marquee act has been a pretty wonderful storyline over the last half-decade, and if she can continue to turn out hits, she’ll be doing the same for a long time.
Philip Cosores
In fact, of the headliners, only The Strokes that disappointed. It’s tough to say what’s going on there, but it’s easy to say that the responsibility falls solely on leader Julian Casablancas. His interest in his main band has seemed slight for literally decades, with him much more artistically and, seemingly, emotionally invested in his side work with The Voidz. On this night (and, through conversations, other nights of the current run), Casablancas seemed to hold his audience in contempt, baffled by why anyone would care about his music and giving them little reason to while on stage. It says something about the undeniability of their catalog that even with a lead singer phoning it in, they still entertained and showed flashes of greatness. Still, it was clearly the least attended headlining set of the weekend.
Philip Cosores
Outside of the headliners, the highlights were many. Vampire Weekend might as well have been a closer, as few bands that are still at their creative peak can fill a festival set with more recognizable tunes. Angel Olsen and Sharon Van Etten got together to play their great recent single “Like I Used To,” while also offering career-spanning sets that presented versions of themselves less tied to particular album cycles. More in the hip-hop lane, Rico Nasty and Nelly both showed off polar-opposite appeals, one with inviting abrasiveness, the other with a stream of tunes deeply ingrained in the public consciousness. And then there’s Khruangbin, the ideal festival band for 2021 that can tap into decades of hits from other artists as well as their own hyper-vibey psych-funk, becoming the ultimate communal band.
Outside Lands also remembers that festivals should be about music discovery. That’s why getting there early is essential, to make sure you take in people like Bartees Strange, whose anthemic indie rock is on a trajectory for bigger rooms as soon as next year. Or people like Dijon, whose silky voice is buoyed by a stage persona that’s hard to take your eyes off, his face contorting and eyebrows furrowing to exemplify the passion of his music. And then there’s my beloved Petey, who opened the Twin Peaks stage on Sunday to a small but mighty crowd, showing off his unique blend of clever songwriting and absurdist humor. He’s the absolute best.
Philip Cosores
Of course, there were all the rest of the activations and eats that make Outside Lands one of the best live events in the world. Maybe most notable is Grasslands, which thanks to California’s legalized weed laws, actually has areas now designated for consumption. Pair that with the self-explanatory Beerlands and Winelands, and well, you have yourself a nice time in the park. The cuisine was expertly curated with some of the best of the Bay, with a special shoutout needing to go to both the wonderful sticky buns from The Chairman and the delicious BBQ from Vegan Mob. But the overall sense of Outside Lands 2021 wasn’t a band or a song or a bite, it was being among tens of thousands of people and losing sight of the greater world narrative for a moment. Live music is a place to lose yourself and find it again. It felt more essential than ever this year.
If you have gone this long without being made aware of “Let’s Go Brandon,” first off, teach me your ways. But for any of the following to make sense, I should probably explain the dumbest meme since that fly landed on Mike Pence. In early October, NASCAR driver Brandon Brown was being interviewed by NBC Sports reporter Kelli Stavast at the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama when the crowd started chanting “f*ck Joe Biden.” Except Stavast didn’t hear “f*ck Joe Biden.” She heard “let’s go Brandon.” And thus, a libs-owning meme (and Billboard-charting songs) was born.
That takes us to this week, when rootin’ tootin’ Lauren Boebert (R-CO) celebrated Republican Glenn Youngkin winning Virginia’s governor’s race over Democrat Terry McAuliffe with a “Let’s Go Brandon” dress. “It’s not a phrase, it’s a movement! #LGB,” she tweeted on Thursday while posing with a certain ex-president.
If the dress looks familiar, that’s because it’s the Spirit Halloween version of what Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) wore to the Met Gala.
Boebert mocked Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s “Tax the Rich” dress that the New York Democrat wore to the Met Gala in September. Boebert’s dress read, “Let’s Go, Brandon,” the phrase that has become something of a rallying cry for President Biden’s most fierce critics, which is code for a derogatory message to the president… Boebert’s office told Fox News on Friday that she posed for the photo with former President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida this week.
Boebert seemingly posed with everyone who wanted a photo — and was widely mocked on Twitter for letting AOC live in her head campaign funds free, I mean, rent free.
Hey, look at me! I don’t have an original thought in my empty head…so, I have to imitate an original idea by @RepAOC — someone much more intelligent than me. @RepBoeberthttps://t.co/1juiN3aEKy
Much can be said about this, but my observation is that @AOC‘s dress advocated for policy, whereas Boebert’s response is a juvenile taunt. A perfect microcosm of the difference between the parties. https://t.co/WQ7h6YyQ7T
Does she… this she’s the AOC of the Right? This is basically, no, literally admitting how much that stupid dress bothered them. https://t.co/PMVp2rZgeu
Ye — aka Kanye West — caused quite a stir with his recent appearance on NORE’s podcast Drink Champs. In addition to throwing his former GOOD Music signees Big Sean and John Legend under the bus and realigning himself with Donald Trump, he also made other wild claims including accusing fellow former Roc-A-Fella Records in-house producer Just Blaze of copying his production style. While it’s true that both producers made use of pitch-shifted soul samples, there is ample evidence that their techniques were developed concurrently — that didn’t stop Kanye from doing his best to burn that particular bridge.
Now, Just Blaze himself has replied to Kanye’s claims, posting a statement on Instagram and Twitter calling the incident “unfortunate” and refuting the accusations of copying.
Well that was unfortunate. I’m only addressing this publicly because it was stated publicly. I’m not here for the mudslinging, I’m just a bit confused and disappointed.
None of what was said tonight regarding me fits with any of our history or our previous interactions – particularly in light of very recent attempts to work together again. Through recent years he has reached out to collaborate on various projects, including a much rumored collaborative project that he was looking for me to handle a good amount of. It unfortunately never saw the light of day due to reasons unrelated to me. Most recently, a couple of months back I woke up to a literal red alert from his people that he was looking for me for his last album in the 11th hour. We tried to pull something off but it was way too last minute.
Regarding that one comment: respectfully, I’m happy for him and the fact that he has succeeded in the ways he wanted to, but not everyone wants to be where he is. Everyone’s definition of personal success is a bit different. I’m quite happy where I am creatively, with my family, and my life in general. We were a part of history together and I wish him well and continued success.
Just signs off by warning, “Media: please do not clickbait this,” but like… we all have jobs to do, man. Anyway, the fallout from Kanye’s implosion on Drink Champs continues to land on the music landscape and I’m sure that there will be further responses from those folks the mercurial producer mentioned because there were a lot and he wasn’t really kind to most of them.
Deron Williams is apparently getting into the world of celebrity boxing. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Williams, who spent more than a decade in the NBA, will be a participant on the undercard of next month’s bout between internet personality Jake Paul and boxer/reality TV star Tommy Fury. The event will take place on Dec. 18.
There is, at this time, no opponent for Williams, but Charania mentioned that he could end up facing another former professional athlete in longtime NFL running back Frank Gore.
NBA-Boxing world crossover, per sources: Former All-Star and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Deron Williams will fight on the Jake Paul/Tommy Fury undercard bout on Dec. 18. Frank Gore — third on the NFL’s all-time rushing yards list — is a potential opponent for Williams.
The No. 3 pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, Williams spent time with the Utah Jazz, New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets, Dallas Mavericks, and Cleveland Cavaliers during his time in the Association. He made three All-Star teams and was a two-time second-team All-NBA selection. Gore, meanwhile, was a five-time Pro Bowl selection in his career, which spanned 16 season and included stops with the San Francisco 49ers, Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, and New York Jets.
Williams would have a notable size advantage — he is 6’3 while Gore is 5’9. Gore, meanwhile, was a professional athlete through last season, while Williams retired back in 2017, and has always been revered for the amount of power he had as a runner despite his relatively small frame. Hopefully getting into boxing goes better for Williams than it did for Nate Robinson.
After boldly tweeting earlier in the year that she’d never go to prison because she’s blonde and white, you’d think Capitol rioter Jenna Ryan would pull back on the tweets after learning that, actually, she will be going to jail despite her skin and hair color. But no. After her 60 day sentence went viral on Thursday, Ryan once again took to Twitter to address her haters and issue what you might call a concession tweet?
“I’m just gonna make a blanket statement to all the people that are calling me and texting me,” she wrote. “You win!!! I’m going to prison. So you don’t need to contact me anymore. Pop champagne and then rejoice. But just leave me alone. Thank you.”
I’m just gonna make a blanket statement to all the people that are calling me and texting me. You win!!! I’m going to prison. So you don’t need to contact me anymore. Pop champagne and then rejoice. But just leave me alone. Thank you
Of course, it’s not a great sign that Ryan still can’t stay away from social media even after her aggressive posting not only led to her swift arrest, but also sealed her fate in court. Her tweet about saying she’ll never go to prison because she’s too blonde and white did not sit well with the judge who wanted to make her an example to MAGA rioters who think they can operate with impunity.
After being sentenced, Ryan even told the media outside the courthouse that she regrets ever tweeting. Clearly, that sentiment didn’t hold for very long.
There’s mystery surrounding Tucker Carlson’s emergency back surgery, and little of that has to do with the surgery itself. Rather, it’s the fact that Tucker had this surgery (which reportedly followed weeks of severe pain, according to Page Six) on Wednesday morning and then returned to the air on Wednesday night to drop a whopper on critical race theory. According to Vice’s Motherboard blog, he described the incident as “one of the most traumatic things that’s ever happened to me in my whole life, ever.” The surgery was confirmed by Vice with a statement from Fox News, and then there was an added detail, which was that Tucker had told his production team that he “understands America’s opioid crisis in a deeper way” because his treatment included fentanyl and other powerful opioid-painkiller medication.
Following word of those remarks (and it was apparently a very lengthy, rambling speech), Tucker subsequently sat out his Wednesday night episode of Tucker Carlson Tonight, and Jesse Watters filled in. For what it’s worth, Watters made that revelation in the early evening hours.
The Independent is reporting that Tucker “cancelled” his nightly appearance. There’s been no confirmation that he definitively cancelled, but he wasn’t on the air for sure. Certainly, he wouldn’t feel so great after surgery, and he probably should have sat out Wednesday night as well. Via Vice, here’s part of the transcript of his leaked backstage remarks on opioids:
“They gave me fentanyl this morning, that did not cure it-they gave me intravenous fentanyl,” he said. “And they gave me all kinds of other sh*t. I was like, ‘Fine, go for it.’ And then it only ended when they gave me propofol, and I went out. Then I woke up and I was like, I felt totally fine. I haven’t taken a single Advil.”
The remarks continued after Carlson apparently expressed his intent to not take opioids again, and he detailed how the drugs made him feel different than usual fearless self:
“I had this spirit of fear within me, which I don’t have,” he said. “I’m not bragging, I don’t have it. And I think you can feel it. I don’t have it, I think that’s why I’m successful, cause I’m just not afraid. I felt afraid just of like life or something. It’s interesting.
“It was super deep. And I just haven’t had those feelings since I was in a plane crash 20 years ago this month. I’ve never had those feelings. I’m always like ‘Yeah I’m gonna die, I don’t care.’ And I mean it. But last night I was like, ‘Oh sh*t.’ Fear-just like anxiety. People who have anxiety, that’s what I felt. And it was from those drugs. And they extinguish the spirit within you. And they make you feel like you’re running away. You’re hiding. It’s so f*cking deep. I’m lying in bed filthy with dog toys on my pillow, and it doesn’t bother me. And I’m not that way. Like I am a f*cking–in real life, I wash the sheets every day. I’m that guy. I shower every day.”
Tucker’s dad previously detailed the plane crash (in an email to a Washington Post) that his son was referencing. And neither Tucker nor Fox News have commented on these reported leaked remarks, but all wishes go out for a speedy recovery for the host.
The spooky season might be over, but that hasn’t stopped Drake from leaning heavily into some Hitchcockian slasher vibes in the video for “Knife Talk” featuring 21 Savage and Project Pat. Leave it to October’s Very Own to hang on to the last vestiges of Halloween with his latest Certified Lover Boy single. As the trio of rappers spit menacing, razor-tipped verses, the video splices in clips from various black-and-white thrillers, using technology to get the characters to lip-sync the rhymes.
The rappers also have some fun with their Ring cameras, evoking chilling flicks like The Strangers and The Purge as they stand outside with huge kitchen knives just… staring. The effect is probably a little less unnerving than it is in the films they evoke but mostly because we’ve all seen 21 Savage singing car karaoke to R&B classics and Drake is… well… Drake. It’s still a pretty cool and creative video, even if it is five days too late.
Fortunately, Drake’s tardiness doesn’t seem to be affecting the popularity of his new album. It recently went No. 1 on Billboard‘s album chart for the fifth non-consecutive week behind singles like the tongue-in-cheek “Way 2 Sexy.”
Watch Drake’s ‘Knife Talk’ Video featuring 21 Savage and Project Pat above.
The Cleveland Browns are 4-4 and tied for the final playoff spot in the AFC at the midway point of the season. Typically, that would be cause for celebration in Cleveland, but after finally breaking through with not just a postseason appearance but a playoff win last year in Pittsburgh, the Browns entered 2021 with real expectations to be a Super Bowl contender for the first time in a long time.
As such, the 4-4 start has felt like a letdown and with injuries piling up, including to quarterback Baker Mayfield, there hasn’t been a lot of cause for optimism that this season will meet those preseason expectations. Adding fuel to the fire has been the return of Odell Beckham Jr. to the lineup this season and, with it, the ever present question of whether the Browns are using him properly or if Mayfield is targeting him enough. With just 17 catches for 262 yards in six appearances, many have questioned why Mayfield won’t do more to get OBJ the ball.
Among those to do so this week was Beckham’s father, who shared a video a Browns/Beckham fan made that is 11 minutes of OBJ being open and either not getting a target or Baker missing him. It caused quite the stir in Cleveland ahead of the trade deadline and after the Browns failed to deal Beckham on Tuesday, he’s been excused from practice the last two days. Finally, on Friday, a resolution was met and the Browns granted OBJ his release, allowing him to hit the waiver wire and, one would assume, ultimately free agency.
Given his salary, it seems unlikely that Beckham will be claimed on waivers, which means that he’s going to be one of the most fascinating in-season free agents in recent memory. There will be plenty of teams interested in adding the former All-Pro, and one would expect him to be choosing a contender to go to — which, of course, sets up the possibility for an OBJ revenge game down the line agains the Browns.
For Cleveland, they seem ready to move on which might be best for all parties, but no matter what happens from here with Baker and the passing offense, the discussion will still circle back to OBJ. If the Browns hit their stride offensively without him, it’ll be a referendum on how Beckham was the problem. If they continue to flounder, it’ll be about how he was right and Baker’s the issue.
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Zero Blitz Jeremy 
