Canelo Alvarez’s next opponent will be Caleb Plant as he looks to add another belt to his WBC, WBA, and WBO collection at 168 pounds, becoming a unified champion by taking down the current IBF champ.
The negotiations for the fight were rocky at times, with the fight being dead on a couple of occasions before finally getting a deal done to fight on November 6 in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. On Tuesday, the fighters held their first press conference and, well, things didn’t go very well as during their face-off prior to the presser, Plant set Alvarez off by calling him a “motherf*cker,” leading Canelo to shove Plant away and then dodge a Plant hook with ease before tagging him under the right eye with a punch before the two could be separated.
For starters, it certainly doesn’t seem to bode well for Plant that Canelo ducked this punch and popped him with a counter this easily at the press conference. More importantly, though, Plant was left with a cut under his eye that was bleeding pretty well, per those at the presser, and while he got cleaned up it is certainly a concerning cut that could very well lead to a postponement of the fight given we are just six weeks out from fight night.
Been to literally hundreds of boring press conferences. Never seen an exchange like that, and especially for a fight like this. That’s a big gash under Plant’s right eye, and it’s bleeding profusely. A cut like that in training usually postpones fights
That will have to be a situation of waiting and seeing, but Plant continued to antagonize Canelo on the stage, setting Alvarez off by again calling him a “motherf*cker” — which Canelo seems to think as an insult towards his mom — and then saying he’s a “drug cheat.”
If the fight is able to happen on November 6, there will undoubtedly be plenty of motivation on both sides, but we’ll have to see if their brief exchange here sets them back at all on account of that cut under Plant’s eye.
Directed by Est Gee’s frequent collaborator Diesel Films, the video is a mix of performance shots and a drive through old neighborhoods that these artists have now transcended but can’t seem to forget. “In Town” is one of the latest songs released off Bigger Than Life Or Death, which had an impressive showing on the Billboard charts despite its mixtape status. The release hit No. 7 on the charts and has earned lots of critical praise for Est Gee, who has been dubbed one of the most impressive rising rookies in rap. As for Lil Durk, he’s been one of Chicago’s most beloved cult rappers for a minute now, and his latest joint album with Lil Baby, The Voice Of The Heroes hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
Check out the new video from these two above, and look out for more coming from both soon.
ViacomCBS, parent company of both Showtime and Paramount+, has announced their plans to bundle the two channel’s streaming services just ahead of Showtime’s Dexter revival series this Fall. While it’s not known how long the bundle will last, or what the package’s final pricing will be, the initial promotion of both services for $10 a month (or $13 for the ad-free option) is available to sign up for until October 20.
According to Deadline, the move comes as no surprise, as “ViacomCBS has been clear about its intention to pursue a range of bundles, which has been a successful strategy for Disney during the recent streaming boom.” In fact, just last month ViacomCBS set forth a joint venture with Comcast for SkyShowtime in Europe, and it seems likely they’ll find ways to incorporate their other services — such as Noggin and BET+ — into bundles as well.
Following the announcement of this “powerhouse bundle,” ViacomCBS streaming CEO Tom Ryan stated:
This powerhouse bundle gives us the opportunity to connect ViacomCBS’ diverse and differentiated cross-genre content slate with even more consumers. Paramount+ and Showtime are both experiencing tremendous growth and momentum, and we expect this competitively priced bundle to only further expand the reach of both services.
Considering ViacomCBS reported its total streaming subscriber base increased by 6.5 million earlier this year, ultimately causing the company to surpass 42 million subscriptions total, it seems like a pretty apt statement to make.
In addition to helping to get more eyes on CBS’s variety of shows and channels, the current package actually helps out consumers quite a bit as well, as those who are currently paying for the two separately are spending between $5 and $10 a month on Paramount+, while Showtime is set at $11. If you’re one of the users currently paying for one of both of the services, now’s a perfect time to take advantage of this new offer and get two of CBS’s biggest streamers for the price of one and just ahead of some of the Fall’s biggest shows.
Fast food chicken sandwiches have become exhausting. Popeyes caught lightning in a bottle when they dropped their chicken sandwich on the world two years ago, but ever since then every fast food company on earth has raced to make a chicken sandwich that can step to the GOAT. We don’t need another Popeyes chicken sandwich, though — we want something else! The Popeyes chicken sandwich is like Jordan in his prime, nobody on the scene right now is ever going to be able to take down this sandwich, only new blood can inherit the crown.
What if — instead of a cheap imitation — a fast food brand actually tried to change the game by doing something no one has done before? That’s a hell of a lot more exciting, right? So you can see why I was psyched to try Panda Express’ new experimental Orange Chicken Sandwich, which is exactly what it sounds like — a big piece of Orange Chicken between buns. Right now, the sandwich is currently exclusive to the Panda Express Innovation Kitchen in Pasadena CA, so unless you’re in So-Cal or willing to drive to So-Cal to eat an Orange Chicken Sandwich (don’t do this) it’s probably going to be a while until you see an Orange Chicken sandwich at your local Panda. But you’d better believe that I have a review ready for when it does come to a chain joint near you.
See my full thoughts on this fast-casual innovator below:
Panda Express Orange Chicken Sandwich
Dane Rivera
To say that I was disappointed in just how wildly different this sandwich looked than its promo picture doesn’t even come close to describing how I felt when I unwrapped the Orange Chicken sandwich. I went through a whole range of emotions: shock, confusion, disgust, concern, how would I even take a picture of this? There is no angle and no amount of lighting tricks to make this look appetizing.
Worse than that, I had to actually eat it! Was it even cooked?
Yes, I’m happy to report that it was cooked, and thankfully tasted better than it looked. The breading on this chicken is that same airy corn/potato starch batter that covers Panda’s usual bite-sized Orange Chicken, it’s light, crispy, and soaks up the sauce perfectly. Mine was clearly under-sauced, though. The Orange Chicken sauce is tangy and sweet, with a slight kick of red pepper that creates a subtle heat on the backend. If you’re a Panda Express regular, you know this sauce well and I definitely wish mine had more of it.
Beneath the chicken patty, I found a sad collection of cabbage, a few chunky crinkle cut pickles, and a spicy aioli sauce which had a more pronounced heat than the orange sauce and added a rich umami quality to the sandwich — pulling the flavors together harmoniously. In fact, the spicy aioli playing off of the orange sauce was what really helped to make this sandwich make sense to the palate.
Gripes aside, Panda Express put this sandwich on a large King’s Hawaiian roll which, we have to admit, is a pretty genius move.
Dane Rivera
After a little reflection, I couldn’t help coming away from this sandwich thinking that it’s missing something. Aside from the obvious need for better quality control and presentation, I think that if this sandwich featured a more intricate slaw, it would do a lot to enhance the experience. Even if Panda Express simply added fresh green onions and carrots to the cabbage and tossed it in sesame oil with cracked black pepper, they might have a sandwich that could actually rival Popeyes, or at the very least offer us something that we actually go out of our way to eat.
Panda Express would also be wise to ditch the pickles. Yes, pickles make sense on a chicken sandwich, but not this one. As it stands, we can taste the insecurity of the Panda Express team. Sometimes they innovate and others they imitate. This is a crazy idea, but if they want to make it work, they need to lean into those Chinese-inspired flavors and find the right complement to them.
The Bottom Line
An interesting experiment and an actually worthwhile product to come as a result of the chicken sandwich wars. That said, we hope Panda Express tweaks this one a bit more before launching it nationwide.
Stargirl (CW, 8:00pm) — Following an epic showdown time for the JSA and Cindy’s new team, Wildcat/Yolanda must make a heartbreaking decision following her crushing guilt over Brainwave’s death.
Love on the Spectrum: Season 2 (Netflix series) — More stories of people on the autism spectrum arrive to show how they meet the challenges of dating and relationships. Expect an even greater variety of personalities, which will illustrate exactly how much diversity arises on the easily misunderstood spectrum.
Supergirl (CW, 9:00pm) — The Ormfell building implodes, leading to great injury for Joey and many others, which horrifies Kelly. In turn, she grows frustrated because the hospital has difficulties with patient overload.
Chucky First Look (SyFy, Midnight) — The homicidal doll’s back when he surfaces at a garage sale, and Zackary Arthur’s Jake makes the mistake of adopting Chucky at a garage sale. Soon, an idyllic community is transformed into a nightmare. Jennifer Tilly returns as Tiffany Valentine, and O.G. actor Brad Dourif is back as well.
The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon — Nicole Kidman, Amanda Gorman, Nore Davis
The Late Show With Stephen Colbert — Bob Woodward,Robert Costa, Leon Bridges
Late Night With Seth Meyers — Bill Burr, Keith Morrison, Ande
In case you missed this streaming pick from last Tuesday:
You vs. Wild: Out Cold (Netflix interactive special) — Bear Grylls can’t stop punishing himself with interactive specials, in which viewers can choose the most entertaining paths for him after he sets out to survive harsh elements, this time in ice-ravaged mountains. There’s a narrative here, involving an amnesia-stricken Bear, who’s following up on the events of his plane crash…. what? He’s asking the audience to help him (and his pilot) get out of harm’s way, but who knows what will really happen? Well, you will know when you decide whether Bear will survive run-ins with wildlife and journeys through freezing tunnels. Do we think Bear Grylls will try to drink his pee and discover it is frozen while dressed like a Thrones character? I can’t wait to find out.
Britney Spears has had it rough for a while, but recently things have been on the up-and-up. She recently got engaged. What’s more, the long battle over her conservatorship, which saw her father, Jamie, still in control over much of her life and her fortune, appears to be coming to an end. It’s the latter that will be the focus of a new Netflix documentary.
It’s called Britney Vs. Spears, and it will be the second high-profile doc about the pop star’s life, following Hulu’s Framing Britney Spears. That one, released earlier this year, chronicled her rise to stardom, her oft-negative treatment by the media, her highly publicized breakdown, and, finally, her conservatorship.
Britney Vs. Spears will delve deep into that last thing, exploring how her father spent 13 years overseeing her wealth and career and shielding her from media appearances, and how Britney ended up being so tightly controlled she reportedly had to ask to borrow other people’s phones to make calls.
Jamie Spears recently offered to end his conservatorship following a long and very public battle, in which his daughter repeatedly petitioned to have a judge give it the axe. Shortly after that happened, Britney became engaged to her longtime boyfriend Sam Asghari.
Britney Vs. Spears will be directed by Erin Lee Carr, award-winning documentarian, who has often focused on true crime stories, as in Netflix’s How to Fix a Drug Scandal and HBO’s I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth vs. Michelle Carter. She is also the daughter of the late New York Times journalist David Carr.
Daniel Craig just strutted into his most dangerous situation yet: giving his opinion on whether the next James Bond should be a woman. While sitting down for an interview ahead of No Time To Die‘s October release, which is actually definitely happening this time (maybe), Craig shared his thoughts on the suggestion that the next Bond should be a woman. According to the actor, it’s a non-starter for him, and he does his best to explain his reasoning why. Via Radio Times:
“The answer to that is very simple,” he said. “There should simply be better parts for women and actors of colour. Why should a woman play James Bond when there should be a part just as good as James Bond, but for a woman?”
While Craig’s answer is sure to shake up (not stir) controversy, the actor does make a valid point that studios should be striving to make more diverse characters that are just as popular as Bond. Of course, that’s easier said than done considering the character has spent over half a century in theaters. You can’t just gin up that kind of name recognition overnight.
Let’s just put it this way: at the height of his original Fast & Furious fame, Vin Diesel tried to launch a new modern-day spy franchise called xXx. By the second film, Diesel was already out and replaced by Ice Cube, which is… not a great development. Yes, Vin came back to the role later, but it’s not like you hear people out in public saying, “Yo, when’s that new xXx movie coming out?” You can’t just press a button and have a successful new film franchise fall in your lap. (Marvel, you stay out of this.)
After stunning in a pale pink ballgown at this year’s Met Gala, Billie Eilish‘s latest Instagram post shows she’s back to her usual uniform: a baggy t-shirt and sneakers. But there’s still something special about her new outfit post — it offers an official first look at a pair of Air Jordan shoes she designed.
Eilish’s Air Jordan collaboration was previously rumored back in June, but her Instagram post officially confirms the news. The singer has two sneaker designs, one is a bright green high top design which reflects her When We All Fall Asleep Where Do We Go? era while the second beige lace-up shoe mimics her Happier Than Ever album’s color scheme. Speaking to Nike in a Behind The Design interview, Eilish said she loves how both designs can be worn with a plethora of styles. “You can kind of do anything in them,” she said. “They’re gender-neutral, which I really love. You can be whoever and whatever you want in these.”
She noted on Instagram:
“I am SO excited to finally share my two air jordan silhouettes with you!! i’ve always loved @jumpman23 and it was such an incredible and surreal experience getting to create these, especially in a sustainable fashion (100% vegan with over 20% recycled material).”
Both shoe designs launch on Eilish’s website on 9/27. Get them here.
This post is adapted from the Uproxx Fall Experience Guide, found here.
The question I asked every travel writer when submitting to the Uproxx Fall Experience Guide was the same, “Why now?” “Why is this entry relevant at this very moment?” It’s a question they turned right back on me when I suggested Portland — the town where I was raised — to sit atop the pack as our #1 destination. And when people asked me that question, whether it was my fellow contributors, my Deputy Editor, or my friends back home, they asked it with an eyebrow arched and some serious emphasis on both the “why” and the “now.”
The implication, especially from my friends in P-Town, was that I was letting nostalgia cloud my judgment. Because Portland has, undoubtedly, fallen on difficult times (Rolling Stone just called it a “far-right proving ground” last week). Certainly, there’s more visible tension than during in the Rip City / “littlest big city” years back in the 1990s; the hipster food boom / “most liveable city” era of the 2000s; or the Portlandia / “Keep Portland Weird” wave of the 2010s. Visiting Portland for two months over the summer, I saw unhoused encampments stretching entire city blocks, stolen bike chop shops that spilled out into busy streets, and beloved buildings covered in tags or boarded up. I also heard story upon story of the violence that has erupted with troubling frequency throughout the city. Clashes that have marred the historically attended, predominantly peaceful BLM protests, marches, and gatherings (and resurfaced as recently as last month).
At times, my conversations about my home city got pretty heavy. So seriously, why now? Of all the years, why pick Portland in 2021?
Travel Portland
To answer that question is to challenge the very idea of why we travel. Is it always about having a glossy vacation, unmarred by real-world concerns? I hope not. I like daiquiris on the beach more than most and I can laze in a spa with the best of them, but if that’s as deep as your trips ever get, travel starts to seem frivolous. It’s a slippery slope from “I only go on vacation to relax” to languishing with the lotus-eaters.
Going to Portland right now isn’t going to be purely relaxing. Even if you stay in the city’s newest hotels, eat at its most acclaimed restaurants, and visit its most buttoned-up bars, you will see reminders of social unrest and interact with the unhoused population. Don’t look away (better yet, get involved — donate time, resources, or money to the Blanchet House or the Portland Rescue Mission). Confronting big issues is an essential part of travel. So is helping beloved destinations recover by infusing local economies with cash. Uproxx has always believed that, since we first started covering travel.
A trip to PDX this fall is a chance to be part of the evolution of a travel destination that has appeared on the “must visit” lists of so many outlets over the years and could use a good jolt of tourist dollars right now. It’s an opportunity to bear witness to the city in all its complexity, rather than just going because you heard about the good donuts and craft beer. It also opens the door to exploring a city in transition on many levels — a fact which is plain to see when you look through the prism of Portland’s most notable obsession: food.
Visit Portland
While the first Portland food revolution (roughly 2001-2010) was about the creativity and skill of chefs who were mostly white, mostly male, and mostly all tattooed with the same pig butchering chart, its current wave is much more inclusive. Eem was a 2020 hot list pick for restaurants and its white curry with burnt ends epitomizes the synergy that’s possible when the “star chef” model is abandoned. Chefs Akkapong Earl Ninsom of Lang Baan, Hat Yai, and Paadee and Matt Vicedomini of Matt’s BBQ and Matt’s BBQ Tacos joined together to create a restaurant that highlighted both of their talents. The results are astounding and Ninsom’s newest venture, Lazy Susan, has been the standout hit of the pandemic.
Moreover, after the Portland food scene became emblematic of the city’s larger issues with diversity and inclusion, BIPOC voices have begun to make inroads in the food and beverage sectors. George Johnson, founder of Assembly Brewing, PDX’s first Black-owned brewery, has drawn rave reviews both for his beer and his Detroit-style pizza. In wine, Bertony Faustin became the first Black winemaker in Oregon back in 2008, opened a tasting room downtown at the height of the political tension in 2020, and has since mentored Tiquette Bramlett, the first Black woman to run a winery in US history (Vidon Vineyard, in nearby Newberg).
“Portland was at a ‘lowest point’ during 2020,” Faustin told me recently. “That spring and summer put a magnifying glass on the city’s issues, but I feel like we’re on the uptick now in a major way. Regardless, you can’t wait ’til everything is creamy to take part. That’s why I opened The Crick, my tasting room, when I did. Because of my career as the first Black winemaker in Portland, I felt like it was my role to come downtown and show people that it’s a good place to start a business, even in the tough times. There are opportunities now that might not have been available for news businesses, especially for minority business owners.”
(If you’re looking for more Black-owned food in Portland, I regret to say that my beloved Stoopid Burger closed during the city’s extended shutdown, but Nacheaux — a Mexican-Cajun fusion concept with an inventive menu that inspires fierce customer loyalty — is new and getting tons of love. A comprehensive directory of Black-owned Portland-based food options can be found here.)
Travel Portland
More than any city I’ve visited this year, the crucial social justice conversations of the past half-decade seem to be leading to a tangible shift in PDX. Over the summer, I saw bands and comedians recognizing the traditional Indigenous owners of the land they were performing on — a formality of almost all events in Australia but one that’s relatively new in the US. It’s a good change and one I’d never witnessed, pre-pandemic. That cultural respect isn’t just lip-service, either, The Native American Community Advisory Council is helping the city decolonize public spaces, including the removal of the once-iconic duck pond at Westmoreland Park, returning the waterway to a wetland featuring traditional foods.
Meanwhile, I spoke with waitstaff and Uber drivers and Portland Tourism officials and locals young and old about the unhoused community in the city and — to a person — the conversations were filled with compassion and nuance. The city I currently live in, Laguna Beach (CA), also has a very visible unhoused community and I rarely hear so much empathy from locals. That’s not to say that all people agreed on the matter, this is a conversation that has been central to the city’s identity since I was a child and it’s not an easy fix. But it’s worth noting that people across the city seem to have genuine regard for the humanity of the unhoused.
Writing in a “travel list” format about the positive and negative aspects of the 104 days of continuous protests (and the many subsequent protests) in Portland after the murder of George Floyd is virtually impossible. With that said, the groups that have come out of those protests will certainly help to guide the city’s new era. Portland’s paper of note, the Oregonian, published a comprehensive review of the one year anniversary of the protests and didn’t attempt to draw any easy conclusions about the success or failures. Instead, they made the point that public protests are part of how the local culture evolves and, in that, a piece of the city’s identity.
So rather than visiting hoping not to see protests of any sort, it’s worthwhile to wonder what any protests you might see have to say about the city (and what they might teach you about your own biases and beliefs). Speaking personally, the protests I saw in the city were all very mellow #BLM car parades. It goes without saying that you should avoid planned Proud Boys rallies or any other alt-right or anarchist events.
Travel Portland
Though travelers may harbor concerns about Portland after a rough year in the news, hotel properties aren’t banking on their hesitation lasting long. 2018 and 2019 were big years for hotel openings in the city and that pace looks to resume early next year. There are five properties set to open in 2022 and early ’23, including the first Tokyo Inn on the West Coast, the first Proper in the PNW, and hotels from Hyatt and Ritz-Carlton. Two hotels actually managed to open in 2021, too. Moxy Portland is sleek, boasts multiple gathering spaces, offers bike rentals, and features rooms that reference Portland’s Indigenous community and heritage. The PaliSociety’s Hotel Grand Stark is even more impressive — doubling down on the midcentury vibe of the city’s industrial-era buildings with interior design that could be set dressing for an early season of Mad Men. The whole property leans heavily into jade green and feels like a memory of Portland that I never actually experienced firsthand but still somehow know (plus the beds are extremely comfortable).
It’s true, Portland may not be polished the way it once was. And the extremist violence is genuinely troubling, make no mistake. But seeing a place with clear eyes is always more authentic than viewing it through rose-colored glasses. There’s no ignoring social issues in Portland right now, nor is there a desire to. And that’s a good thing. Being willing to face the reality of the situation in the places you visit is the core difference between “travel” and “tourism.”
So yes, go to Portland. But not just for the famous food carts and pods or the new hotels or the many many bars or the dance clubs like Holocene and CC Slaughters or the endless live music options or the comedy scene or the city’s prominent LGBTQI community or the commitment to public art or the fact that it was named America’s Best Pizza City a few months ago or because it’s home to one of the largest urban forest reserves in the nation or those incredible donuts or… those elements were all in place in some form pre-pandemic, pre-protests, and pre-extremist violence. Go to witness a city that features all of those incredible attributes and is also in the midst of the biggest transition it’s seen in more than 25 years.
Go to be part of the city’s new era. An era that’s sure to be more inclusive and progressive than those that preceded it. Go to support new development and fresh ideas. Go to bear witness to the creative minds like Bertony Faustin who are helping get P-Town back on track.
“Don’t write this city off,” Faustin says. “Portland thrives as an underdog. Give it a chance and it’ll surprise you.”
Last week, Lil Nas X revealed the two artists he was unable to secure features from on his debut album Montero. The first, Drake, was unable to participate as he was putting the finishing touches on his own album, Certified Lover Boy. Nas says he’d wanted Drake on “Dolla Sign Slime”; instead, Megan Thee Stallion filled in admirably. However, Nas never did reveal which song he wanted Nicki on, which would have been a coup for a former member of her hardcore stan army, The Barbz. He said she never responded to his requests.
Today, though, during a Twitter Q&A to support his album, Nas solved the mystery for his curious fellow Barbz. When he was asked which song from the album he originally sent to Nicki Minaj, he didn’t hesitate to answer: “Industry Baby,” the Daytrip-produced, Kanye West-assisted, Jack Harlow-featuring megahit that is currently burning up the airwaves and terrorizing Lil Boosie’s dreams.
Admittedly, it could have resulted in a wildly different, yet more organic sounding collaboration — while Jack’s part in the video would probably have played a lot differently with Minaj in his place. However, Jack acquitted himself pretty well and has been a good sport about the video’s content, even going as far as saying he wouldn’t mind reshooting the infamous shower scene.
As to why Nicki never got back to Nas: that remains a mystery, although she had plenty of reasons, from just recently becoming a mother to battling a harassment lawsuit as her husband Kenneth faced trial for failing to register as a sex offender when the couple moved to California. She also wouldn’t have had much time to promote the record thanks to “Ball-gate” and its resulting backlash. Perhaps when the dust settles, we’ll hear a remix, which has been her M.O. of late, helping Doja Cat’s “Say So” go No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart.
Montero is out now on Columbia.
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