Much of Jake Tapper’s recent CNN airtime has been devoted to coverage of the Afghanistan debacle, but on Sunday, the anchor took time to air a dying wish from former Rep. Paul Mitchell (R-MI), who passed away about a week ago following a battle against cancer.
Mitchell, who spoke with Tapper from a hospice bed, expressed his desire to only have this interview aired following his death. The interview was an emotional one on both ends with the frequently (and necessarily) stoic Tapper expressing sadness over Mitchell’s terminal condition, and Mitchell (who retired in December 2020) making a plea for bipartisanship to finally happen, even as Democrats and Republicans find themselves increasingly at odds. It’s a phenomenon that isn’t new, although it’s clear that the pandemic has only exacerbated existing fissures with Mitchell noting (on the subject of vaccines), “It’s ‘I won’t talk to you.’ It’s breaking up families.”
“There’s value in people you don’t agree with. It’s easy to find people you agree with. There’s value in people that you may disagree with on something strongly, but it doesn’t inherently make them a bad person,” Mitchell further declared to Tapper. “Learn to understand people and judge less and love more and let’s have less hatred. It’s destroying our society.”
Sage words that will hopefully be heeded. Watch the video below.
Fmr. GOP Rep. Paul Mitchell, who died earlier this month after a battle with cancer, asked for this interview to be run after he passed. He expressed his wish for “real bipartisanship” within the country. “I think you have to choose whether or not to love people.” #CNNSOTUpic.twitter.com/7mXNYCELib
It’s been a few years since Kacey Musgraves secured several Grammys for her hit 2018 album Golden Hour. Since then, the singer has gone through several transitions in her life, including a divorce, but she’s now preparing for the release of her upcoming album, Star-Crossed.
Musgraves officially announced Star-Crossed Monday, saying it will arrive in early September alongside a film on Paramount+. She also recently sat down with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe to discuss her LP. While writing music for the album, Musgraves was at first worried that she didn’t yet have a concept and that it was just “going to be a bunch of sad songs.” But then, she started learning about the structure of old Greek theater and realized her Star-Crossed album is a “modern tragedy in three acts.” Because of this, Musgraves is giving her own modern-day definition of “star-crossed”:
“It’s to be f*cked by love or luck. You’re ill-fated, it’s just not written in the stars. It is not for you. And everyone puts out their highlight reel, nobody’s putting out their f*ck ups. And that’s one of the reasons why it’s daunting. But I’m excited to share ‘star-crossed’ just because people know me to be a songwriter that writes about what I’m going through. And I think it would have been extremely awkward if I just acted this last chapter didn’t happen for me. So I think you saw my highlight reel with Golden Hour and this is the other side of that. And I mean there are beautiful parts of that too.”
Elsewhere in the conversation, Musgraves said there are some parts of the record that sound more country than Golden Hour, but her album is also meant to be theatrical. “I always love when something classic or something traditional, something futuristic kind of meet,” she said. “I just, I’m always intrigued by that. Whether it’s in fashion, etc. I think that there are certain aspects of this record that sound a little bit more country, I guess than Golden Hour. I don’t know. But at the same time, I feel like I’m tapping into more influences on this, widespread influences on this album.”
Watch Musgraves’ full interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe and Star-Crossed film trailer above. See her Star-Crossed album artwork and tracklist below.
UMG Nashville/Interscope
1. “Star-Crossed”
2. “Good Wife”
3. “Cherry Blossom”
4. “Simple Times”
5. “If This Was A Movie..”
6. “Justified”
7. “Angel”
8. “Breadwinner”
9. “Camera Roll”
10. “Easier Said”
11. “Hookup Scene”
12. “Keep Lookin’ Up”
13. “What Doesn’t Kill Me”
14. “There Is A Light”
15. “Gracias A La Vida”
Star-Crossed is out 9/10 via Interscope Records/UMG Nashville. Pre-order it here.
Last summer, Yesenia Aguilar was walking on a sidewalk five minutes from home in Anaheim, California when a drunk driver jumped the curb with her Jeep and struck her. The vehicle narrowly missed her husband, James Alvarez, who was walking beside her. Aguilar was 35 weeks pregnant at the time.
Tragically, Aguilar died at the hospital, but the couple’s baby, Adalyn Rose, was delivered via cesarean section and survived. For the past year, Alvarez has poured himself into being a good dad to Adalyn while processing the grief and trauma of witnessing his wife be killed right in front of him.
The story was widely covered in the news and many people have followed Alvarez as he shares his life with Adalyn on social media. It’s now been a year since the accident, and the birthday photos Alvarez has shared of Adalyn’s first birthday are touching people deeply.
With the help of X & V Photography, Alvarez has recreated a photoshoot he and Aguilar did not long before the accident. Aguilar was dressed in a pink gown, with her baby bump featuring prominently in the photos. In the new shoot, Alvarez dressed Adalyn in a pink dress as well and posed her in the places her mother was in the previous one.
The effect is sadly touching and achingly beautiful—a reminder of the gift of life.
It’s hard to imagine what range of emotions this shoot brought up for Alvarez.
It’s also hard to imagine how Adalyn will process the whole story when she’s old enough to understand.
But what a beautiful tribute to the woman who gave her life before hers was taken.
“Adalyn, I know if your mommy was here, she would have been the happiest person alive,” Alvarez wrote in an Instagram share of the photo shoot. “She would be so excited to celebrate your birthday. That’s why, I’m making sure I fulfill her wishes and wish the happiest birthday ever baby. Your mommy and daddy loves you.”
It’s the hardest thing to make beauty out of tragedy, but these photos prove it’s possible. Happy birthday, little Adalyn.
When my daughter started seeing a therapist for anxiety, I went to several of her sessions. Holy moly. Even though I don’t struggle with mental health issues, I got so much out of her sessions just observing and listening. I came to the conclusion that every one of us could benefit from seeing a therapist.
We have regular checkups and basic exams with a regular doctor for our physical health. Doesn’t it make sense that we could use a regular checkup for our mental health as well, even if just for maintenance?
I learned about how the brain works and how thoughts and feelings and behaviors play off of one another. I learned about what things we actually have control of and which things we don’t. I learned a hundred little things that have helped me process daily living in the increasingly chaotic world we live in. Five stars for therapy. Highly recommend.
Of course, not everyone has easy or affordable access to mental health care (which is a whole other article) so we have to glean what we can, where we can. And thanks to Twitter user @drivingmemadi, we can all glean some therapy insights from a thread she started this summer.
if everyone drops one thing they learned in therapy we can all gain insight from this thread
So many helpful mental and emotional health tips. Highly recommend every human being go to therapy if they are able. We all have things we might need help processing, and the world would be a whole lot better place if everyone dealt with their pain, trauma, worries, etc. in a healthy way.
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System turns 30 years old today (at least in North America, where it was released on August 23, 1991). Even now, its influence is omnipresent in gaming: Aside from franchises like Mario and Zelda still pumping out hit titles, countless new games today continue to be inspired by the aesthetics and gameplay of beloved SNES-era favorites.
The console had a ton of games released in North America (720 of them, Wikipedia says), and they sure have been ranked a lot over the years. Most of these rankings reflect how editorial staffs feel about these games, and while it’s great to have experts weigh in, critical opinions often don’t reflect how the majority of people think (for better or worse). Look at the Fast & Furious franchise: On RottenTomatoes, almost all of the movies have a substantially higher audience score than they do critic score (for better or worse). For the latest, F9, about 20 percentage points stand between the thoughts of the Professional Film Critic and the fervent moviegoer who catalogs user ratings on RottenTomatoes.
Furthermore, reviews of SNES titles were mostly published when the games came out, so they don’t indicate how gamers today feel about these games. Given the radically dissimilar context in which retro games are consumed now vs. how they were enjoyed before they were retro, there’s some noteworthy dissonance between reception then and now (especially with one game in particular, as we’ll get to later on). Not to mention, SNES games are too old to appear on most modern review aggregator websites, so it’s hard to find quantified critical consensus.
So, as the SNES turns 30, I decided to come up with definitive, data-driven, crowd-sourced rankings of which games are the most popular and beloved among modern players, the games people are actually still playing and enjoying decades later. I didn’t need to create a poll and drum up interest for that myself, though, as thankfully, the data I wanted already exists in droves and has been collected over the course of many years.
Derrick Rossignol
To make this list, first, I browsed the SNES games listed on the websites Emuparadise, Grouvee, IGDB, and HowLongToBeat, all of which feature an average user rating for just about every SNES game ever released and indicate how many users rated the game. For all the North American releases that had at least 100 cumulative ratings across all the sites, I entered them in a spreadsheet. For each game, I added the number of ratings from all the sites, what those ratings were, and calculated an average rating.
The scores that resulted from this process reflect the game’s average ratings, but not how many ratings it had, aka how many people are actually playing the game these days. For our purposes, that’s a problem: a game that one person thinks is a 100 isn’t more popular than a game that ten thousand people rate a 99. So, to take that into account, I used a mathematical formula based on ones concocted by people who know more about numbers than I do. The final score that results from this (which is based on a 0-100 scale) takes into account both how many ratings the games have and what those ratings are.
All of these sites are at least a decade old, and in total, 217,464 total user ratings for 221 games were collected (between July 16 and 18) for this list. Emuparadise launched in 2000, while the SNES was discontinued in North America in 1999, so it could be said that these ratings represent how gamers have felt about the SNES and its games ever since the console went off the market. (That’s assuming Emuparadise featured user ratings since its inception, which I was unable to verify. Either way, we have some finely aged data here.)
To reiterate, these rankings have nothing to do with my opinions or those of anybody else at Uproxx. They would look a lot different if they did; Kirby’s Dream Course and Super Bases Loaded, which would both be somewhere in at least the top 20 of my personal rankings, didn’t even make this list. Rather, these rankings intend to accurately represent how appreciated these games are now based on the thoughts of over 200,000 gamers, not just one or a few.
Now that we’ve established the method used to create the list, let’s get into it, starting with 100 and working through the ranks before getting into more detail with the top 10 games.
100. Looney Tunes B-Ball
99. Knights Of The Round
98. Breath Of Fire
97. Ranma 1/2: Hard Battle
96. Ninja Gaiden Trilogy
95. Battletoads In Battlemaniacs
94. Side Pocket
93. Kirby’s Dream Land 3
92. The Adventures Of Batman & Robin
91. Aero Fighters
90. Castlevania: Dracula X
89. Wolfenstein 3D
88. ActRaiser
87. International Superstar Soccer
86. Arcana
85. Secret Of Evermore
84. NBA Jam
83. Congo’s Caper
82. Final Fight
81. Prince Of Persia
Nintendo
80. R-Type III: The Third Lightning
79. Marvel Super Heroes In War Of The Gems
78. Hagane: The Final Conflict
77. SimCity 2000
76. The King Of Dragons
75. Robotrek
74. Uncharted Waters 2: New Horizons
73. Final Fight 3
72. Earthworm Jim
71. Prehistorik Man
70. Ogre Battle: The March Of The Black Queen
69. Breath Of Fire II
68. Mega Man 7
67. Super Bomberman 2
66. Tiny Toon Adventures: Wacky Sports Challenge
65. E.V.O.: Search For Eden
64. Gradius III
63. F-Zero
62. Illusion Of Gaia
61. Sid Meier’s Civilization
Capcom
60. Doom
59. Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts
58. Tetris & Dr. Mario
57. Strike Gunner S.T.G
56. Star Fox
55. Lufia II: Rise Of The Sinistrals
54. Zero The Kamikaze Squirrel
53. SimCity
52. Harvest Moon
51. The Lion King
50. Aerobiz Supersonic
49. Mortal Kombat 3
48. Street Fighter Alpha 2
47. Super Double Dragon
46. Goof Troop
45. Tetris Attack
44. Top Gear 3000
43. Drakkhen
42. Super Bomberman
41. International Superstar Soccer Deluxe
Konami
40. Dragon View
39. Zombies Ate My Neighbors
38. Rock N’ Roll Racing
37. Super Street Fighter II
36. Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting
35. Sunset Riders
34. Super Punch-Out
33. Super Castlevania IV
32. Mega Man X3
31. Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
30. Mortal Kombat II
29. Secret Of Mana
28. Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble!
27. Top Gear
26. Street Fighter II: The World Warrior
25. Kirby Super Star
24. Contra III: The Alien Wars
23. Ultimate Fighter
22. Final Fantasy IV
21. Mega Man X2
Nintendo
20. Mortal Kombat
19. Shaq Fu
18. Killer Instinct
17. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
16. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles In Time
15. Disney’s Aladdin
14. Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest
13. Super Mario RPG: Legend Of The Seven Stars
12. Final Fantasy VI
11. Super Mario Kart
10. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island
Nintendo
Release Date: October 4, 1995 Final Score: 64.39 Average Rating: 88.38/100 (19th) Total Ratings: 4,712 (10th)
Yoshi’s Island was one of the best-looking SNES games when it came out in 1995, and it remains so now thanks to its casual, hand-drawn art style that has aged better than the crayon scribblings of my youth. Aside from that, though, the gameplay is really unlike many other games that were out during the SNES era or are available now (save for the Yoshi games that followed it, like the superb Yoshi’s Wooly World).
The egg mechanic is all its own, and Baby Mario essentially serving as a hybrid health-meter/death countdown/escort mission hasn’t to my knowledge been duplicated since, or at least not as well as it’s done here. Meanwhile, the game’s level designs are engaging and intuitive, the world and those who inhabit it are vibrant and beautiful, and that final Bowser fight was one of the most intimidating and epic moments of my childhood… and it’s honestly still a thrilling nail-biter.
9. Top Gear 2
Kemco
Release Date: August 8, 1993 Final Score: 68.08 Average Rating: 96.77/100 (1st) Total Ratings: 4,629 (11th)
Admittedly, this one was, to me, a surprise entry on the list, especially this high up; It’s the only one in the top 40 or so that I had never heard of. Regardless, the game today has a relatively large fan base who feel passionately about it. Actually exploring the game, it makes sense that that’s the case.
Based on my (admittedly limited) knowledge of the swath of SNES racing games, Top Gear 2 has to be one of the most intricate. Even just when first booting up the game, players can choose whether they want an automatic or manual transmission, or miles or kilometers per hour for the speed display. There are five control schemes available to pick and even different engines from which to choose. As far as SNES driving experiences, it appears this is as deep as they get, a thinking man’s answer to the more cartoony Super Mario Kart.
8. Super Metroid
Nintendo
Release Date: April 18, 1994 Final Score: 72.72 Average Rating: 90.04/100 (10th) Total Ratings: 7,118 (8th)
Remember this summer, when the Nintendo fan community collectively lost its sh*t over the announcement of Metroid Dread, the first new 2D Metroid game in some time? A big reason for that is the legacy and expected level of quality that Super Metroid helped establish.
Perhaps more than any game on this list, Super Metroid was critical in the creation of a genre that’s still prevalent today. Heck, the genre is partially named after the game: Metroidvania. Super Metroid is all about exploration, and it offers quite the world to peruse. Combine that with a fun-to-control protagonist in Samus, a gorgeous art style that still looks surprisingly modern, and other superlative elements not mentioned here, and you have a game that’s — and this isn’t hyperbole — genuinely timeless.
7. The Legend Of Zelda: A Link To The Past
Nintendo
Release Date: April 13, 1992 Final Score: 75.86 Average Rating: 90.85/100 (6th) Total Ratings: 8,125 (7th)
The Nintendo Entertainment System title Zelda II: The Adventure Of Link is a definite outlier in the Zelda series, as it notably boasts side-scrolling platforming gameplay, which isn’t all too common in Hyrule. Nintendo made a return to the top-down RPG format, though, with its follow up, A Link To The Past, and what a return it was; Any game that introduces an item as iconic as the Master Sword is a non-debatable winner. On top of that, it has one of gaming’s greatest secrets/Easter eggs, the Chris Houlihan room.
The game is one of the best-selling in the SNES library, and thusly, its legacy has been well-preserved over the years with its Game Boy Advance port, current presence on Nintendo Switch Online, and various tributes and honors prior and in between. Based on the elements of the game that live on today, and just how good the game is, Link To The Past could be considered the defining entry in the storied franchise.
6. Donkey Kong Country
Nintendo
Release Date: November 21, 1994 Final Score: 75.86 Average Rating: 88.31/100 (22nd) Total Ratings: 8,622 (4th)
In 1994, Donkey Kong Country looked stunning, and honestly, it’s still impressive today. That’s thanks to the game’s sprites and visual assets that were made to look like 3D models, which made the game appear as futuristic as any console game at the time.
Good graphics are great, but if the gameplay isn’t there, then who cares? Donkey Kong Country is of course a stellar platforming experience that, like its visuals, holds up in 2021. Aside from the game’s inherent value, it’s also the seed for other phenomenal side-scrolling Donkey Kong games, like the SNES Donkey Kong Country sequels and the more recent Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze.
5. Super Mario All-Stars
Nintendo
Release Date: August 11, 1993 Final Score: 77.26 Average Rating: 88.36/100 (20th) Total Ratings: 9,187 (3rd)
Just because the NES came to an end and was followed by an advanced new console, that didn’t mean fans were totally over the original Mario adventures. Those NES games were still fun and worthwhile in the ’90s, so Nintendo kept them alive during the decade with Super Mario All-Stars, a compilation that went on to become the SNES’ second-best-selling game.
If you know the original Super Mario Bros. games, there’s not much need to explain the appeal of All-Stars. The collection isn’t entirely a re-hash, though, as it features Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, which previously wasn’t released in North America because Nintendo thought it would be too challenging for US players and therefore not a welcoming direct sequel to the original SMB.
4. Mega Man X
Capcom
Release Date: January 19, 1994 Final Score: 77.55 Average Rating: 92.78/100 (3rd) Total Ratings: 8,406 (6th)
Mega Man was one of the defining and omnipresent franchises on the NES, thanks to the six games that were released on the platform. When it came time for Mega Man to establish itself on the SNES, though, it did so with a left turn: Mega Man X.
The game was a departure for the franchise, but one that paid off big time. Aside from key plot changes — the game has a new protagonist and futuristic setting — the game offered players more mobility thanks to X’s ability to scale and jump off walls. That said, the game didn’t try to fix what wasn’t broken: The new elements keep it interesting, but at the core of Mega Man X is the classic Mega Man gameplay that made it a hit.
3. Chrono Trigger
Square
Release Date: August 11, 1995 Final Score: 78.60 Average Rating: 94.22/100 (2nd) Total Ratings: 8,536 (5th)
Chrono Trigger was positioned for success even before it was released: It was helmed by a three-person team consisting of Hironobu Sakaguchi (creator of the Final Fantasy series), Yuji Horii (creator of the Dragon Quest series), and Akira Toriyama (Dragon Quest‘s character designer and the author of the Dragon Ball manga series). Yeah, that’s a lot of game-making firepower.
Indeed, the game was a success upon release and has resonated consistently over the years since: The 2008 port for the Nintendo DS is one of the platform’s most highly rated games, and fans were excited to hear music from the series played during this year’s opening ceremony at the Olympics. Chrono Trigger may not have the name recognition of Mario or Zelda among casual gamers, but it is nonetheless an essential SNES experience that continues to excite players a quarter of a century later.
2. EarthBound
Nintendo
Release Date: June 5, 1995 Final Score: 83.58 Average Rating: 92.21/100 (4th) Total Ratings: 11,150 (2nd)
If, a year after its release, you told SNES fans that EarthBound would become one of the platform’s most beloved games, you’d have raised a lot of eyebrows. While players today know that the game is a favorite, it actually wasn’t a hit in the US when it was initially released. It sold poorly, but as the years went on, a fervent legion of fans helped the game earned its deserved acclaim, and now it routinely appears near the top of lists like this one.
The game stands out because it’s not like most other RPGs of its era. It’s comedic in tone and based on regular American life, meaning it’s not so steeped in RPG tropes like dragons and spells and whatnot. It’s a unique and refreshing entry in the SNES library and it’s no wonder why it is beloved today, despite being unjustly undervalued in its time.
1. Super Mario World
Nintendo
Release Date: August 23, 1991 Final Score: 94.91 Average Rating: 90.46/100 (7th) Total Ratings: 18,762 (1st)
I’m far from the first person to toot Super Mario World‘s horn. It’s regarded as one of the greatest games ever and is far and away the best-selling title on the SNES: It sold over 20 million copies, and that’s not even counting the 5.7 million copies the Game Boy Advance port (Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2) moved. To put that into perspective, the next best-selling SNES game, Super Mario All-Stars, sold about 10.5 million units. (That actually closely mirrors the difference in Total Ratings between SMW and All-Stars on this list, too.)
It spawned an animated TV show and a manga series. It’s a major part of the foundation for Super Mario Maker 2, one of the most popular Nintendo Switch games. It’s one of the most active games in the world of speedrunning. There’s an active community of fans who warp the game into their own original playable Mario adventures.
None of those things would be possible if there wasn’t a fantastic game behind the hype, and SMW‘s gameplay is still so tight and fun today. There’s a reason virtually every new platformer today is modeled at least in part after SMW and its predecessors on the NES. So many SNES games have aged poorly, but Mario and his world remain super.
If you want to see that list again in infographic form, here you go:
Off hand, I used to be able to tell you how any movies have been in the MCU without looking. Then, at some point in Phase 3, I used to have to stop and count, but I could still do it. Now, especially with the Disney+ entries added in, I’m not convinced I can do it without missing something. I guess my point is, here’s a movie series that is so long now I can no longer tell you how many entries there are off the top of my head, yet the latest entry, Destin Daniel Cretton’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, still has to use a remarkable amount of exposition to explain so much.
Now, don’t get me wrong, when the story is moving and not explaining, it really moves. The fight scene on the bus that’s been heavily used in the marketing (and comes surprisingly early in the movie) is dynamite. And star Simu Liu, who, let’s say, over the past year has expressed confidence on social media about his performance (a confidence, I should add, I’m quite envious of), well he backs up in the final product. He has both a swagger of a screen presence and pulls off some nifty stunt work that makes the action in Shang-Chi the best I’ve seen in an MCU movie. In that there is actual action going on in this movie, as opposed to just CGI action. (Though there’s plenty of that, too. At one point Simu Liu rides a dragon and I’m guessing that’s not a practical effect.)
Shang-Chi opens in San Francisco with pals Shang-Chi, who is using the name “Shaun” (Liu), and Katy (Awkwafina), just kind of stumbling through life: working as valets, taking the cars they were supposed to be parking on joy rides, then hitting karaoke until dawn. I honestly could have watched an entire movie about this. (Strangely, the film abruptly loses the lighthearted tone after the first act.) Shaun and Katy are on the bus when Shaun is attacked and Katy is forced to drive the bus (there’s a lot of Speed in this scene) and Katy is bewildered that Shaun knows how to fight very well.
So here’s when things get tricky. Shaun tells Katy his actual name is Shang-Chi and he tells her his whole life story about his father, Wenwu (Tony Leung, who is unsurprisingly amazing), being the leader of an international crime organization called the Ten Rings and how he had been trained since a little boy to take over the operation – to the chagrin of his now-estranged sister, Xialing (Meng’er Zhang), who feels she was ignored by her father because of her gender. (Wenwu is a new character because the comic book history of Shang-Chi’s father is, well, complicated and bad and you can go read all about that if you want.) Shang-Chi and Katy then set off on an adventure to find his sister to warn her that their father’s army just attacked him and will probably come after her next. (Katy is a weird character here in that there’s really absolutely no reason for her to be put in the danger she’s put in throughout this movie since she’s just a regular person with no fighting skills and no superpowers, other than being a good driver. Yet Awkwafina brings so much life to every scene, I also understand why every excuse possible is made to make sure she’s in every scene she’s in.)
But this movie also delves into the Ten Rings (which, yes, is right there in the title of the movie), but in the comics that was associated with the Iron Man villain, The Mandarin. Obviously, we saw a version of The Mandarin in Iron Man 3, who turned out to be an actor named Trevor (plays with delight by Ben Kingsley). So we’ve got a new hero that has a backstory that needs explaining and we have the Ten Rings, which need a lot of explaining. (You see, the Ten Rings is both a criminal organization and literally ten rings that give its owner superpowers. Oh, also, the rings are sentient.) So, as you might expect, there’s a lot of exposition in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and, for the life of me, I don’t really know how the movie could get around that and still introduce two huge plot elements that have to be explained. (And not to get too deep into the plot of this movie, but it then, about halfway through, introduces a third huge thing that needs a long explanation.)
It’s a stark juxtaposition, the long periods of exposition, then the story jumps back to life with beautiful set pieces and intense action. (There’s a scene set on the scaffolding of a skyscraper that is, again, dynamite.) And when the characters are just being the characters, instead of listening to exposition, this is a really fun movie. (And Destin Daniel Cretton excels at characters.) It’s all here. And it’s why I’m really looking forward to the next chapter now that we got all the explaining out of the way. Because the movie ends with the same lighthearted tone that it started with, and it hit me, oh yeah, that would have been nice if the whole movie could have been like that.
Whenever a pair of rappers occupies a relatively similar lane stylistically, vocally, or even physically, hip-hop fans often pit them against each other or they just naturally end up at odds — see Future and Rich Homie Quan or any new female rapper and Nicki Minaj. With the release of the deluxe version of Rod Wave’s No. 1 album SoulFly, fans have detected another potential beef of this nature brewing in one of the lines on the new song, “Get Ready.”
“Labels used to look past me, now they trying to remake me,” Rod croons. “Grab a fat n**** out the trenches and replace me/Tryna duplicate me, can’t be.” While rappers have often lamented the transient nature of stardom in hip-hop, it’s Rod’s choice of words that has fans on high alert looking for a feud. “Trenches” is, of course, the title of one of North Carolina rapper Morray’s breakthrough singles, on which Morray laments rap’s focus on so many negative aspects of lower-income upbringing.
As both rappers share a melodic flow, alternating between the singsong raps that are popular today and outright belting, as well as a husky physique and a rags-to-riches survival narrative, fans have interpreted the line as a shot at Morray (they were even both featured on XXL’s Freshman covers — Rod in 2020 and Morray this year). Further exacerbating the issue, rap manager Benjamin Rainwater, who managed the late Dallas rapper Mo3, made it clear in a recent interview that while the posthumous track “In My Blood” was to initially feature Rod Wave but replaced him with Morray, who Rainwater called “somebody genuine” — implying that perhaps Rod was not.
am i trippin or did this nigga rod wave diss morray in “get ready”
Why is rod wave dissing morray for.. ain’t no label tryna find another rod wave when half the world don’t even know who that nigga is niggas be having egos thinking somebody copying them & they the first of everything . If anything derez deshon should be where rod at
Perhaps everyone’s reading too much into things, but as it stands, Rod Wave at least has the grounds to be a little salty about Morray taking at least one opportunity from him. However, given that his latest album was able to top the Billboard 200, it’s probably better for him to remain focused on his own success. Meanwhile, with a tour with J. Cole coming up, Morray has his own rising profile to worry about.
There’s just nothing quite like a summer road trip. The freedom of setting out with only a loose itinerary and nothing but the winding road and endless possibilities is, frankly, close to unbeatable. It offers a chance to live in the now while reminding us that this moment is at once fleeting and eternal.
With just two weeks left before Labor Day and the unofficial end of summer 2021, there’s just enough time to hit the road for one last hurrah. Here are three road trips I recommend this time of year:
ITINERARY 1: Glacier National Park –> Waterton Lakes National Park –> Banff National Park –> Jasper National Park
I always go north in the summer. While many of these destinations are partially open year-round, often the weather will close some of the most beautiful areas in the winter months. You also can’t do this for much longer:
Glacier National Park has been an incredibly popular destination for summer 2021, but those who didn’t visit earlier now have an advantage: you can now legally continue on into Canada as a US citizen. Canada just opened its borders to fully vaccinated US travelers earlier this month, which means these destinations will still be slightly less crowded than normal — a perfect time to see them for yourself.
Glacier National Park to Waterton Lakes: Drive Time: 2.5 hours (including a border crossing)
After exploring Waterton Lakes, head on to Banff. If you have more time, make some stops in Kootenay and/or Yoho National Parks along the way. You can’t go wrong in Banff, it’s one of the rare places that is actually more incredible in person than any photo you have ever seen. The dramatic mountains that surround you, to the blue lakes that don’t seem real — this is a bucket list destination.
The drive from Banff to Jasper National Park might be the most incredible drive in North America. You’ll be traveling on the 143 mile (232 km, ’cause we’re in Canada now) Icefields Parkway through landscapes that truly don’t seem real. You’ll want at least three and a half hours, but I’d give yourself an entire day. There are many stops to make and things to gawk at on the way.
I was hesitant to travel to the Southeast this August, but pleasantly surprised that the hospitality outweighed the humidity. The west is a road-trip dream, but it’s also vast and far away for most of the United States population. Fortunately, there’s plenty to see and explore in the Southeast — specifically the coast of Georgia.
I spent a week traveling from Jacksonville to Atlanta and was charmed every step of the way.
Jacksonville to Cumberland Island National Seashore: Drive Time: 45 minutes + 45 minute ferry ride
I flew into Jacksonville to begin my Georgia adventure. From there, I drove the short distance to St. Mary’s, Georgia — where the ferry to Cumberland Island National Seashore departs. Cumberland Island has been on my bucket list for years now. The history and people are intensely interesting on their own, not to mention the ample wildlife and true wilderness. You can camp, stay at the Greyfiled Inn, or visit for just a day.
Whatever you choose you will feel like you have somehow completely escaped the world.
Must-Sees:
Rent a bike, take a tour or hike the island. Be sure to spend time on the longest undisturbed coastline on the eastern seaboard.
Cumberland Island to St. Simons Island: Drive Time: 1 hour
From Cumberland Island, it’s a short drive to St. Simons Island, a small beach community with beautiful beaches and a laid-back vibe. I stayed in an adults-only hotel (strongly recommended) and walked to the beach to relax and watch the waves.
St. Simons Island is just an hour and a half from historic Savannah, Georgia. Savannah, of course, has something for everyone. Walk (and legally drink) around the historic downtown squares, eat your weight in Southern cuisine, or drive out to Tybee Island for a beach day.
Must-Sees:
Stop at Fort Pulaski National Monument on the way to Tybee Island (stay for sunset). Stay at Perry Lane Hotel in Savannah, a luxurious spot that greets you with champagne upon arrival, has a beautiful rooftop pool and bar with views that can’t be beaten.
Summer in the Northeast is magic. I spent the entire summer traveling and whenever anyone asks me what my favorite trip was I have to say — “Maine.” The vibe was exactly as I wanted it to be. Quiet, but full of energy. Unassuming, but jaw-droppingly gorgeous.
It all felt like a movie set come to life.
Portland Maine to Acadia National Park: Drive Time: 3 hours
I didn’t have time to visit Portland Maine this trip, but I would add it for next time. The drive from Portland to Acadia National Park in Bar Harbor is just three hours along the coast, with many stops to make.
Acadia National Park to Lubec: Drive Time: 2 hours
Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor are amazing and deserve at least 3-4 days of your time. You can read a lot more here. From there, continue north to Lubec Maine — the northeastern-most city in the United States and the access point to your next destination in Canada.
Must-Sees:
Watch sunrise or sunset at the summit of Cadillac Mountain (with a timed entry ticket), and eat popovers at Jordan Pond House after a hike around the lake at Acadia. Stop at Jasper Beach on your way to Lubec, and be sure to visit the lighthouse and gorgeous hiking in Quoddy Head State Park in Lubec.
Lubec to Campobello: Drive Time: 10 minutes + border crossing
Lubec is the only road access point to Campobello Island in Canada — home of Roosevelt Campobello International Park. Unfortunately, the border wasn’t open to US travelers when I visited, so I am itching to get back. The park is co-managed by the US National Park Service and Canada, preserving the summer home of Franklin Roosevelt through a museum, hiking trails, and gorgeous shorelines.
After resigning as New York Governor following the damning results of an investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct, Andrew Cuomo has somehow found a way to tarnish his public image even further. According to a new report, Cuomo has been staying at his sister’s home without his dog, Captain, who the outgoing governor is allegedly trying to abandon after leaving him at the Executive Mansion. Via the Times Union:
Two State Police sources told the Times Union on Saturday that the governor had recently asked mansion staff members if anyone would be interested in caring for the dog. Captain — a high-strung mix of shepherd, Siberian and malamute — has nipped a few people since Cuomo adopted him in 2018, the sources said, and a mansion staffer recently took the dog home for a few days but decided he was too much.
A spokesman for Cuomo denied that he’s trying to give Captain away, and that the situation with the staffer was only “temporary,” but a State Police source for the Times Union said that an attempt was made to give the dog away.
Considering Cuomo is already persona non grata following the sexual harassment scandal, news of the soon-to-be-former governor abandoning his dog did not go over well on social media where people alternated between dragging Cuomo and offering to adopt Captain.
Over the years, Beyonce and Jay-Z have come to represent a standard of luxury for a generation of music fans. Likewise, the long-established jeweler Tiffany & Co. has also represented class and elegance at a high level, so it only makes sense for the brand to tap into The Carters’ cachet as it markets its product to that younger generation. The only thing that would improve such an idea would be some kind of expensive, ridiculous rare art piece — what’s that, you say? A never-before-seen painting of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s? Yeah, that’ll do the trick.
Alexandre Arnault, Tiffany’s executive VP of products and communications, told WWD that the painting, the 1982 “Equals Pi,” is “a way to modernize Tiffany blue.” He elaborated that while the inspiration of the painting isn’t quite ironclad, the choice of the iconic shade was likely intentional. “We don’t have any literature that says he made the painting for Tiffany,” he said.
“But we know a little bit about Basquiat. We know his family. We did an exhibition of his work at the Louis Vuitton Foundation a few years back. We know he loved New York, and that he loved luxury and he loved jewelry. My guess is that the [blue painting] is not by chance. The color is so specific that it has to be some kind of homage. As you can see, there is zero Tiffany blue in the campaign other than the painting. It’s a way to modernize Tiffany blue.”
MASON POOLE FOR TIFFANY & CO.
The campaign marks the first time the company’s signature Tiffany Diamond (worn by Beyonce) appears in such marketing materials, making Beyonce only the fourth woman to wear it after Mary Whitehouse, Audrey Hepburn, and Lady Gaga. A short film accompanying the ad sees Beyonce singing the theme song from the 1961 film Breakfast At Tiffany’s to Jay as he films her with a Super 8 camera.
For more about the campaign, you can read WWD’s feature here.
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(@TySwankkk) 
(@Speeddangerr) 
dammit
(@yxng_nate) 
(@kgrayready) 
niggas be having egos thinking somebody copying them & they the first of everything . If anything derez deshon should be where rod at
