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One of the notable tour announcements that emerged in the post-live music shutdown of the pandemic, was that of Hamilton Leithauser and Kevin Morby joining forces for the super indie gift that is the Fall Mixer Tour. The pair traded covers of each other’s songs this past March and have now released the original collaboration single, “Virginia Beach” ahead of the tour which begins this week.

An uncanny finger picked guitar opens the song before Leithauser comes in with his signature cabaret howl. The hushed Morby takes a turn on vocals and the pair come together over over a melody that sounds more akin to Morby’s home of Kansas City than Leithauser’s in NYC. But the guitars expand, piano add texture and it’s just a welcome union for fans of both artists.

“I wanted to do a modern take on a dark country song which would transform into more of a dark dance groove,” Leithauser said of the song. Morby added that “It was my attempt at evoking Cash and Dylans ‘Wanted Man’ or Barbara Keith’s ‘Detroit or Buffalo,’ or any of those other lost country and rock n roll songs that shout out cities off the beaten path.”

Listen to “Virginia Beach” above and check out the Fall Mixer 2021 tour dates below.

10/14 — Richmond, VA @ The National
10/15 — Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom
10/16 — Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
10/18 — Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
10/19 — Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
10/21 — Houston, TX @The Heights Theater
10/22 — Dallas, TX @ Kessler Theater
10/23 — Austin, TX @ Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater
10/25 — Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
10/26 — San Diego, CA @ Observatory North Park
10/27 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Theatre at Ace Hotel
10/28 — San Francisco, CA @ August Hall
11/01 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
11/02 — Tacoma, WA @ Spanish Ballroom
11/03 — Seattle, WA @ Moore Theatre
11/05 — Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory
11/06 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Music Hall
11/08 — Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre
11/10 — Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line
11/11 — Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
11/12 — Indianapolis, IN @ The Vogue
11/13 — Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall
11/15 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre
11/17 — Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
11/18 — New York, NY @ Webster Hall
11/19 — Boston, MA @ Royale
11/20 — Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
11/22 — Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
11/23 — Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club

Few films are as loathed as Cats, the star-studded, bewilderingly misjudged movie take on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s deathless feline musical. But you know who hates it more than just about anyone? Andrew Lloyd Webber. The trauma of seeing one of his most successful shows turned into one of cinema’s biggest farts was so traumatic he even bought himself a therapy dog. But it wasn’t all bad for him. After all, he got to write a song with one of today’s biggest musicians.

As per Variety, the musical theater god recently confessed at an event that he quite liked working “Beautiful Ghosts,” a new song for the movie he composed with Taylor Swift, who played the mischievous Macavity.

“It was one of the few enjoyable experiences [on the film],” Lloyd Webber admitted. “It was probably the enjoyable experience.”

Lloyd Webber called Swift, one of many of the film’s stars who somehow escaped unscathed, a “real pro,” and praised her for digging into the source: T.S. Eliot’s poetry collection Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats.

“One of the things I was quite intrigued by, she got to the essence of what T.S. Eliot was about,” Lloyd Webber recalled. “It wasn’t just a lyric thrown together at all. I did enjoy working with her very, very, very much.”

So, good for him, because otherwise, it sounds like Lloyd Webber didn’t have a good time watching one of his shows massacred. He previously trashed the film to Variety. “Cats was off-the-scale all wrong,” he said back then. “There wasn’t really any understanding of why the music ticked at all. I saw it and I just thought, ‘Oh, God, no.’ It was the first time in my 70-odd years on this planet that I went out and bought a dog. So the one good thing to come out of it is my little Havanese puppy.”

In the meantime, Lloyd Webber can console himself with having been a wildly successful musical impresario for the last several decades, with one of them — The Phantom of the Opera — still playing on Broadway after 33 years. Speaking of bad movie musicals…

(Via Variety)

While the comic book industry has made major strides towards greater representation over the course of the last decade or so, there’s no denying yesterday’s Superman news was monumental. To celebrate National Coming Out Day, DC comics announced their current Superman, Clark Kent and Lois Lane’s son, Jon Kent, is bisexual, and will be entering into a romantic relationship with a young, male reporter his comic book series’ (Superman: Son of Kal-El) next few issues. However, while the majority of the internet celebrated the announcement — after all, the depiction of MLM (male-loving-male) relationships in the media is still scarce and ripe with problems — naturally there were a few folks not too happy about the big announcement.

In a recent appearance on Fox & Friends, one-time Superman actor Dean Cain criticized DC comics for confirming Jon Kent as bisexual, calling the move neither “bold or brave.” Cain continued on to say that having a superhero come out in a time where the majority of male superhero stories are still extremely heteronormative, was merely “bandwagoning,” citing just two other LGBTQ+ heroes in an attempt to prove his point.

“They said it’s a bold new direction, I say they’re bandwagoning. Robin just came out as bi — who’s really shocked about that one? The new Captain America is gay. My daughter in [The CW series] Supergirl, where I played the father, was gay. So I don’t think it’s bold or brave or some crazy new direction. If they had done this 20 years ago, perhaps that would be bold or brave.”

For those of you who might be a bit shocked a former Superman would say this, it’s worth noting Cain has become somewhat notorious for his troubling views since departing Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman back in the late 90s, with folks dunking on him as recently as last year for some pretty bad Superman takes. To make matters worse, however, Cain did not stop there and instead insisted on elaborating on what his definition of bravery looked like in comics.

“Brave would be having him fighting for the rights of gay people in Iran where they’ll throw you off a building for the offense of being gay,” Cain continued. “They’re talking about having him fight climate change and the deportation of refugees and he’s dating a hacktivist — whatever a hactivist is. Why don’t they have him fight the injustices that created the refugees whose deportation he’s protesting? That would be brave, I’d read that. Or fighting for the rights of women to attend school and have the ability to work and live and boys not to be raped by men under the new warm and fuzzy Taliban — that would be brave. There’s real evil in this world today, real corruption and government overreach, plenty of things to fight against. Human trafficking — real and actual slavery going on … It’d be great to tackle those issues.”

While there is the smallest sliver of validity to what Cain said (it would be great to see more comic books tackle government/police corruption and overreach, follow heroes protecting marginalized groups, and draw attention to worker exploitation and human trafficking), I’m being very generous in my interpretation and just about all of what’s around it showcases the actor’s intense (and notorious) xenophobia, prejudice, and dismissiveness toward representation being a very real issue.

However, rest assured that all of Cain’s bickering doesn’t change the fact the Superman is now bisexual, nor does it alter the trajectory of the DC universe. Regardless of who dismisses their bold choices, DC and comic book publications as a whole are moving towards a brighter and more inclusive future, and that’s a pretty brave move in and of itself.

The Phoenix Suns and Deandre Ayton have until Oct. 18 to come to terms on a contract extension. If that does not happen, the former No. 1 overall pick will become a restricted free agent at the end of the 2021-22 NBA season, and according to a recent report by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the two sides are running into issues.

Woj said that Ayton, who has become a centerpiece to the Suns’ young core that made a run to the NBA Finals last season, believes he deserves a full maximum rookie extension that could pay him up to $207 million over five years. This is the deal that a handful of other players in his draft class have signed, but apparently, Phoenix’s front office does not see things that way.

On Tuesday, Ayton was asked about this, and he stressed that he’s disappointed with how the whole thing has gone.

https://twitter.com/DuaneRankin/status/1448023206300848131

The other members of Ayton’s draft class who have gotten a rookie maximum extension are Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Michael Porter Jr. Of course, as Ayton has made it a point to mention, none of those players have been on a team that has made it to the NBA Finals. Ayton is not the only player on the Suns in line for a big payday, as Mikal Bridges was also selected in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft and has yet to come to terms on a contract extension.

Vince Staples might be best-known for his sardonic social media personality and scathing, nihilistic gangsta raps, but he’s also quite the pitchman — remember his hilarious Sprite commercials? The Long Beach native puts all three skills to use on Pokemon 25: The Album, a companion compilation of tracks celebrating the generations-spanning multimedia franchise’s 25th anniversary. Vince contributes “Got ‘Em” to the album, which also features such names as J Balvin, Lil Yachty, Post Malone, and Tierra Whack and drops October 15.

Above, in a rare glimpse of earnestness from Vince, he breaks down the “evolution” — hehe — of “Got ‘Em” along with some “help” from Snorlax. Of course, if you know anything about Pokemon — which, as Vince points out in the video, you probably do — Snorlax’s assistance amounts to basically napping in the corner while Vince recounts his experiences playing the video game and watching the cartoon growing up. As he puts it, “It’s important to tap into your inner child or just not be jaded. There’s always room for excitement or fun or optimism if you can keep hold of the things that were important to you in childhood, it’ll put you into a good place.”

If that feels like a big swing from the rapper’s usual stance on such things, it might be time to go back and review his old work — despite the running thread of fatalistic acceptance of his dark surroundings, there have always been glimpses of optimism as seen through his mischievous sense of humor. That humor pops up in his Pokemon explainer, too; the latter portion of the clip consists of Vince comparing his “nap ability” to Snorlax’s and determining that despite being an expert in catching 40 winks whenever possible, the rotund road napper has a lot more experience in sawing logs at a moment’s notice.

You can watch Vince Staples talk up Pokemon 25 above and pre-order the album here.

The Toronto Raptors are back in the 6 after spending last season plying their trade in Florida. In response to restrictions put in place by Canada’s government during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Raptors were unable to play their home games in Scotiabank Arena last season, meaning it’s been a minute since the team’s most famous fan got to watch them in-person.

While we’re still on the long march towards the regular season, Drake made his triumphant return to watching the Raptors on Monday night during a preseason tilt against the Houston Rockets. At one point, because this is the preseason we are talking about here, Drake joined the team’s broadcasters while sitting courtside and having something to drink to talk about getting back into the arena.

The whole thing is a delight — it very much seems like Drake just showed up and they had a conversation like a bunch of old friends catching up with one another, Fred VanVleet throws his arms up when he realizes Drake is on the broadcast, just excellent television from top to bottom. This should absolutely happen more often, whether it’s Drake and the Raptors or any other superfan just showing up and radiating good vibes during a broadcast.

As for the game, Toronto beast Houston, 107-92.

Chucky: Season 1 (SYFY and USA, 10:00pm) — The good-bad news is that the O.G. homicidal doll shall never die. Granted, a mid-2020 teaser that kept things very mysterious regarding who would voice Chucky, but this trailer puts that mystery to rest. Mark Hamill may have been the most recent Chucky, but original voice actor Brad Dourif will return for this USA Network/SyFy sequel series. Also notably, Jennifer Tilly will return as Tiffany Valentine, but this trailer largely focuses on Zackary Arthur’s Jake, who makes the mistake of adopting Chucky at a garage sale. All hell breaks loose, and as Chucky puts it, this will be the “World Series of Slaughter.”

Stargirl (CW, 8:00pm) — Hey, Joel McHale will return to this series as a regular (after Starman’s very apparent death in the pilot episode) in Season 3, but for now, Courtney’s devastated to learn that Pat’s been keeping a major secret from her (Starman?). While working that out in her head, she and Jennie set off on a road trip to stop Eclipso.

Convergence: Courage in a Crisis (Netflix film) — This documentary poses an unlikely idea: did the pandemic really bring us together, as much as it’s torn humanity apart? Listen up for the argument that unsung heroes are pushing us toward a collectively brighter future.

Bright: Samurai Soul (Netflix film) — This anime movie takes place in between the Shogunate’s fall and the Meiji era’s rise, all while a wandering ronin and an orc (who’s working toward redemption) meet up with a young elf girl, and they all take a journey toward the land of the elves. In the process, they must evade a shady organization who aims to take the elf’s wand and use it to resurrect the Dark Lord’s power.

Supergirl (CW, 9:00pm) — Nyxly’s in kidnap-mode with William while Supergirl keeps attempting to acquire totems but realizes that a new strategy is warranted to save National City.

La Brea (NBC, 9:00pm) — Natalie Zea stars in this series about an LA sinkhole that sucks an unfortunate group into some primeval hellhole, where pterodactyls and bad CGI reside. It’s preposterous and not objectively good but might attract Manifest fans, and the sabertooth tiger cliffhanger dangles some promise. This week, food supplies are dwindling, so it’s time to head into the forest, which means primeval-hell creatures.

The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon — Khloe Kardashian, Meghan Tranior, Chloe

Late Night With Seth Meyers — Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Scott Speedman

In case you missed these streaming picks from last Tuesday:

The Closer (Netflix comedy special) — Dave Chappelle’s stand-up comedy run with Netflix has been a lucrative one for both parties. This combined body of work includes The Age of Spin, Deep in the Heart of Texas, Equanimity, The Bird Revelation, and Sticks & Stones, and the supposed final chapter is called The Closer. There’s no telling whether Chappelle and Netflix’s common goodwill (after CEO Ted Sarandos helped him receive The Chappelle Show license back, along with millions of dollars) will result in a re-upping of a deal beyond this sixth stand-up special, but for now, the The Closer (with returning, Emmy-award winning director Stan Lathan) is closing things out.

Escape The Undertaker (Netflix interactive special) — Following Bandersnatch, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. The Reverend, and You Vs. Wild: Out Cold, this new interactive special features WWE Superstars aplenty. Uhhh, The Undertaker’s living in an extreme haunted house and The New Day tag team is simply trying to survive his wrath. I’m not gonna lie, this is awfully confusing stuff, but our next selection is not any less baffling.

After years of resting somewhere between a Hollywood pariah and a no longer in-demand actress, Megan Fox is having a bit of a comeback, but she wants the record to show that there are no hard feelings.

In a wild, yet insightful new interview that also chronicles her blossoming relationship with Machine Gun Kelly, Fox opens up about going from being the white-hot star of Transformers to being constantly ridiculed in the tabloids. While there was definitely a misogynistic bent to the coverage Fox received at the time, she’s made peace with the rough patch in her career. She’s also stopped looking at herself as a victim because “you’re giving away your power constantly.” Via British GQ:

‘It’s [made me grow] into a much more interesting human being than I would have been without that. So it allows you the space to have gratitude for something that previously you felt persecuted by. That’s the one thing in my life I did do a lot of work on, I do feel free from.’ Fox is thoughtful, having clearly spent a lot of time working through her own feelings about it. ‘So it’s not that I feel vindicated. I’m beyond that, because I don’t need to be right about it any more. Back then I was hurt – of course I did suffer tremendously – but, you know, I’m not looking for payback. I don’t need an apology.’

If Fox is trying to take her power back, it’s certainly working. Later this month, she can be seen alongside The White Lotus‘ Sydney Sweeney in the Netflix Original Night Teeth. And, just to say it again for the people in the back, she was really good in her arc on New Girl. This is an important thing people should know and/or remember, and this is as good an opportunity as any to do that.

(Via British GQ)

Move over “Sweet Caroline,” there’s a new anthem in Boston now. After last night’s improbable ALDS series victory over the favored Tampa Bay Rays, the wild card Boston Red Sox went through the typical motions of a playoff win. You know, line the locker room with plastic sheets and spray beer all over each other. But there was something different about this particular celebration…

You’d normally expect the tough guy baseball player types to belt out a jock jam rock song from say…Bon Jovi? Queen? Or in Boston’s case, Neil Diamond? But not your 2021 Red Sox. No sir. Xander Bogaerts, Kyle Schwarber, Kiké Hernandez, and the fellas broke out into “Dancing On My Own” by undisputed Swedish pop Queen Robyn… and it was glorious:

A true sad banger if there ever was one, it’s actually fairly appropriate considering not many people had the Red Sox pegged to beat the Rays and their best record in the American League. In fact, Robyn told BBC Newsbeat last year that she finds nostalgia and sentimentality “difficult” and she appreciates how the song “became something that took on meaning for a lot of people in different ways.”

It’s certainly playing into the underdog mentality of these Red Sox who already beat the Yankees in a one-game playoff before taking down the Rays. It’s nice to know that us sad boys and girls and professional athletes are inspired by the same music. And hey, Robyn is not just for when you’re all in your feels at the karaoke bar anymore.

Summer Walker’s album rollout for Still Over It, the follow-up to her 2019 debut, Over It, continues as the Atlanta singer announces her next single, “Ex For A Reason,” featuring JT of City Girls. In addition, she shared a partial tracklist revealing the first two songs and the final one, connecting each of the 20 songs to a specific date from August of 2019 to this past October 7.

Summer initially revealed the new album’s release date last Tuesday, sharing the “Still Over It” trailer which featured a throwback to her Over It photoshoot and a phone conversation she had with the then-incarcerated JT. The two promised to connect and it appears that the upcoming single will reveal further details of that conversation, judging from the date on the tracklist, while also marking the duo’s first collaboration on a record since JT’s release early last year.

Although Summer shared the titles of two more songs — “Bitter,” the album’s opener, and “Ciara’s Prayer,” the final track on the album — she has yet to release any other music from the project. Yet, anticipation for its release is sky-high among R&B fans, who have been awaiting a follow-up to Over It for over two years, perhaps driven by the social media drama she’s shared over that span and the certainty that she’d channel her real-life tea into her music.

We’ll certainly have a chance to find out on October 15, when the first single drops, and November 5, when the album does.