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As Ted Lasso Season 2 gets ready to stream on Apple TV later this month, Jason Sudeikis is the center of a lengthy new profile for GQ where the former Saturday Night Live actor bares his soul on everything from finding success as the almost violently kind Coach Lasso to his headline-making split from fiancé Olivia Wilde.

Speaking of headlines, Sudeikis also took some time to explain his hoodie-wearing acceptance speech at the Golden Globes earlier in the year. Thanks to his noticeably disheveled appearance, and Don Cheadle signaling him to wrap things up, Sudeikis instantly went viral, but he wants to set the record straight that he wasn’t baked or sitting around lamenting his love life. He just felt stupid wearing a suit while in room all by himself. (Sudeikis had Zoomed in from London where he was filming the second season of Ted Lasso.) Via GQ:

“I wore that hoodie because I didn’t wanna f*cking wear the f*cking top half of a Tom Ford suit,” he said. “I love Tom Ford suits. But it felt weird as shit.”

The rest of this story you know: Sudeikis ended up winning best actor for Ted Lasso and gave a dazed acceptance speech while wearing the hoodie, and this in turn sparked glee and speculation about his mental and physical states. For the record, “I was neither high nor heartbroken,” Sudeikis said. It was just late at night and he didn’t want to wear a suit. “So yeah, off it came and it was like, ‘This is how I feel. I believe in moving forward.’ ”

If Sudeikis isn’t in the mood for awards show, there’s some bad (but good) news on that front. On Tuesday, Ted Lasso scored 20 Emmy nominations shattering a previous record held by Glee. Naturally, Sudeikis is among those nominations for Best Lead Actor.

(Via GQ)

Nostalgia is a powerful thing. It can drive someone to spend an entire weekend re-watching an old cartoon they haven’t seen since they were a kid, or play through an old game they used to love on an old console. There is a significant portion of people that enjoy the opportunity to embrace nostalgia no matter how small.

This is a large part of why a trailer dropped today for a new Nickelodeon game. Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is a Super Smash Bros. style fighting game where players will be able to take their favorite Nickelodeon characters and put them in battles to see who comes out victorious. Where the nostalgia comes in is the roster, because the trailer features a plethora of 90’s Nickelodeon cartoon characters including Spongebob, Nigel Thornberry, and Reptar the dinosaur. It will also feature two of the Ninja Turtles, Michaelangelo and Leonardo.

The trailer for this game looks extremely bizarre. There’s an art style to it that initially comes off as unappealing, but when the characters are actually put into some of the stages they look like they fit right in. All of the stages are, unsurprisingly, Nickelodeon-themed and like Smash Bros. will be based on characters in the game. It’s going to be weird watching Reptar beat up Leonardo in Jellyfish fields, but also is that any weirder than Link fighting Donkey Kong in Delfino Plaza?

It will be interesting to see just how deep into copying Smash Bros. this game goes. There’s a lot of technical intricacies to the Super Smash Bros. games that make them unique it’s why they have such a super competitive esports scene. If Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl manages to capture even some of that same spirit then it could end up being a fun time! However, if it comes off as nothing more than a cheap cash grab clone then it will fail. It needs to do something unique beyond just being a Smash Bros. clone. We’ll just have to wait and see until we get some more info in the future.

Don’t blink now, but the Persona series is officially 25 years old this year. The first game came out in 1996 as a spin-off to the Shin Megami Tensei series, but the popularity of the Persona games eventually allowed the spin-off to become its own franchise. Now that it has there are plenty of Persona fans eagerly anticipating the next game in the franchise.

They may be getting some news on that soon! Atlus, the developers of Persona, recently teased a big year for the 25th anniversary. Their website features a timeline count down that will begin September 2021 and end Autumn of 2022. That’s a full year’s worth of Persona content and there is speculation that among that could be a new teaser for Persona 6.

Until now, Atlus has remained very quiet about the future of the Persona series. Since Persona 5 they released a spin-off with Persona 5 Strikers and the expansion Persona 5 Royal. These helped build out that universe and give more stories to the characters that many people fell in love with. However, now that those games have been released, it appears that they will be turning their development time towards Persona 6. An official online recruitment page stated as much. Via Game Informer.

“Thanks to a large amount of support we received for Persona 5, we have gotten a sense of accomplishment,” said Hiraoka. “But we can’t stop there. When we created Persona 4, there was the pressure that it had to exceed Persona 3. Now, we will have to create a 6 which exceeds 5. However, exceeding 5 will be difficult with the current staff. I would like to surpass this tall hurdle with everyone who joins us in this recruitment. The workplace is perfect for those who want a creative challenge when it comes to bringing games to the world.”

So we know that Persona 6 exists and is currently in some form of development, but how deep into development that is could be anyone’s guess. They might still be in the planning phases or they could be recruiting people to actually start building the game. What has fans excited though is that, with a full year of Persona content on the way to celebrate the game’s 25th anniversary, wouldn’t it be cool if we got a teaser of some kind? It doesn’t have to be much. Just something acknowledging the game existing would be great. It would also line up with how they’ve handled game announcements before. Persona 5 was first shown to us in 2014 and that was just an image with an intended release date.

Of course, that game ended up being delayed multiple times throughout development. We’ll just have to wait and see what they want to show us throughout this anniversary and maybe we’ll get a teaser out of it if we’re lucky.

Back at the start of the pandemic, social distancing, and the shutdown of the live music industry, artists kept themselves busy and their fans engaged in various ways. Livestream concerts was a big one, but Idles’ Joe Talbot went a different route by launching his own talk show, Balley TV. The most recent episode dropped in August 2020, but now Balley TV is making a return via a new special, “In Defense Of The Arts.”

Idles is teaming up with Vans for the special, which was filmed in the Old Vic Tunnels at House Of Vans London. The special runs for nearly an hour and will feature interviews and performances from Deep Tan, Nuha Ruby Ra, and Katy J Pearons, as well as Idles and Slowthai linking up for a new version of Ultra Mono highlight “Model Village.”

A studio version of the song will drop on the same day and Talbot says of it, “We are fortunate to announce our forces have joined with the enigmatic and vibrant soul that is Slowthai. Go dig.”

The Idles and Slowthai connection will continue later this year when Idles will perform at Slowthai’s Happyland festival. Idles also have a new documentary, Don’t Go Gentle, on the way.

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

Every week, Uproxx is rounding up the best new indie music from the past seven days. This week we got the official return of Courtney Barnett, an ’80s cover from Angel Olsen, and a snarling punk number from Australian punks Amyl And The Sniffers. Check out the rest of the best new indie music below.

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

Half Waif – Mythopoetics

On her fifth full-length album under the name Half Waif, Nandi Rose channels her unique brand of dark pop to break the familial patterns that were handed down to her. Mythopoetics turns the pain of breaking tradition into something truly beautiful, a feat that Rose has managed to pull off effortlessly throughout her growing catalogue.

Koreless – Agor

It’s been ten years since Welsh producer Lewis Roberts dropped his debut single under the Koreless moniker, though Roberts has been filling his time with collaboration work alongside artists like FKA Twigs and Rita Ora. Agor doesn’t sound like any of his recent more pop-oriented work. Instead, it takes on a fully experimental approach that illustrates just how far Roberts is willing to go to perfect his craft.

The Goon Sax – Mirror II

Australian indie-pop outfit The Goon Sax have been around for the better part of the last five years, but Mirror II really sees the trio come into their own for something addicting. Melodic, and clever, the LP is what Steven Hyden described as “infectious and introspective” in a recent issue of the Indie Mixtape newsletter.

Museum Of Love – Life Of Mammals

For the first time in nearly a decade, LCD Soundsystem offshoot project Museum Of Love are back with a brand new album. Life Of Mammals allows core members Pat Mahoney and Dennis McNany to find ways to incorporate their affinity for visual art into their music, with a James Murphy mix that gives the songs an absolutely massive sound.

Courtney Barnett – “Rae Street”

It’s always good news with Courtney Barnett announces a new project. “Rae Street” is the first original music from the Australian singer-songwriter after a year of releasing covers, and reminds us exactly what made Barnett so special when she stormed onto the scene in the mid-2010s. The single is the first taste of Barnett’s forthcoming LP Things Take Time, Take Time, which is due out in November.

Deafheaven – “The Gnashing”

With the lead single for their new album Infinite Granite, Deafheaven signaled a sonic shift away from their black metal roots. “The Gnashing” continues down the path, a track that, as Derrick Rossignol describes for Uproxx “continues the band’s tradition of their epic guitar-based sound, [while] seeming [to confirm] that Clarke’s less hardcore vocals are here to stay.”

Strand Of Oaks – “Galacticana”

Timothy Showalter’s forthcoming eighth album under the name Strand Of Oaks was “created with so much love and my greatest hope is that it connects with people and provides a momentary space for reflection, joy, catharsis, and whatever else someone might be looking for in their life,” he explained in a statement. Lead single “Galacticana” is a contemplative new track that will certainly get you in the headspace for reflection and joy.

Angel Olsen – “Gloria” (Laura Branigan cover)

After the acclaim of her 2020 effort Whole New Mess, Angel OIsen is looking to the past for an EP of ’80s covers. Aisles is previewed by “Gloria,” a synthy, modernized rendition of Laura Branigan’s track originally composed in Italian by Umberto Tozzi. “I just wanted to have a little fun and be a little more spontaneous, and I think I needed to remember that I could!” Olsen wrote in a statement.

Amyl And The Sniffers – “Guided By Angels”

There isn’t a lot of snotty punk rock to go around these days. Australian rockers Amyl And The Sniffers are here to change that with their forthcoming sophomore LP Comfort To Me. The album is preceded by “Guided By Angels,” a snarling affair that stems from the quartet’s time quarantining in a three-bedroom home after two years on the road.

A Great Big Pile Of Leaves – “Beat Up Shoes”

Eight years after their last release, emo idols A Great Big Pile Of Leaves are back with a brand new full-length album. The twinkly, math rock-inspired “Beat Up Shoes” is the first taste of Pono, which may or may not be named after Neil Young’s short-lived high fidelity MP3 player.

Kississippi – “Moonover”

I’ve written in the past about how exciting it is to see an artist emerge from the DIY basement scene with a vision that could catapult them into the pop stratosphere. Kississippi’s forthcoming album Mood Ring is a full-blown pop project, reminiscent of Taylor Swift’s Red or 1989. “Moonover” is one of the most propulsive tracks on the record, and it won’t take long to understand why I’ve been raving about it since the project was announced.

Yasmin Nur – “My Favorite T-Shirt”

Hailing from Wichita, Kansas, Yasmin Nur’s new track tries to find the balance between yearning for acceptance and being comfortable in your own skin. “My Favorite T-Shirt” spends its first few seconds building to a cathartic explosion of a full-band onslaught with distorted guitars and melodic pop punk-infused vocals.

Career Woman – “The Little Dipper”

I’ve had my eye on Career Woman since the release of “Balcony” earlier this year. “The Little Dipper” is a more contemplative affair than its predecessor, existing as almost a diary entry from 17-year-old songwriter Melody Caudill that illustrates the first few months of quarantine in Los Angeles. With just an acoustic guitar and vocal harmonies delivering hefty emotional weight, “The Little Dipper” is reminiscent of early Phoebe Bridgers in the best way.

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

Spotify and Electric Lady Studios have announced a new series of EPs titled Live At Electric Lady, with the first release featuring Jon Batiste, coming on July 29. Additional recordings will feature Patti Smith, Japanese Breakfast, Dominic Fike, Faye Webster, Bleachers, Remi Wolf, and Natalie Bergman, “with more surprises to come,” according to a press release.

As for Batiste, the Oscar-winning Colbert musical director recorded his EP with fellow jazz musicians Kenny Garrett, Ron Carter, Gary Bartz, and Joe Saylor. Meanwhile, according to the release, each artist spent their sessions playing their own music, plus “cover songs of artists connected to the studio’s history.”

Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner had some nice words about her experience recording at Electric Lady, which is famously situated in New York City’s West Village and has hosted sessions by iconic musicians like Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Wonder, The Clash, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, and more. “It was an absolute dream to get to record at Electric Lady. The rooms are filled with good, ancient vibes and the engineers there are unparalleled, so it’s no wonder it’s such an iconic studio that holds a place in so many legends’ hearts,” said Zauner. Faye Webster, who recently released the critically lauded LP I Know I’m Funny Haha, also had good things to say: “I’m so excited and honored to be a part of this. For my first time in Electric Lady, to be a part of this series with so many people I love, is something I’ll never forget. I’m going to be processing this for a while.”

Look out for Jon Batiste’s Live At Electric Lady EP on 5/21.

Coi Leray, DDG, Lakeyah, and Morray kick off the 2021 XXL Freshman Cyphers for this year’s class, each bringing their own unique style to a beat produced by algorithm master Nick Mira. DDG opens proceedings with a typical West Coast/Michigan swing flow, then cedes the floor to Lakeyah, who undoubtedly delivers the best straight-up rap verse, hunting for the sort of credit that only comes from being an expert technician. Morray splits the balance between his signature crooning and some off-the-dome rhymes bigging up his cohorts.

That leaves Coi Leray, who is quite possibly the most controversial addition to this year’s list. Despite having three years of tried-and-true material including a handful of viral hits to her name, it was her song “No More Parties” that first exposed her to the wider mainstream audience, drawing comparisons to both Dej Loaf and Playboi Carti in the process. It’s also, oddly enough, the song least like the bulk of her output, so it seemed going in that the Cypher would be her chance to lay skeptics’ doubts to rest.

She absolutely does not do that, instead opting for a choppy, Carti-esque delivery on a relatively short verse that does little to allay the concerns about her placement before giving up and resorting to her trademark twerking. It’s an unusual choice for a rapper who is under fire and facing a make-or-break moment with all eyes on her. While it’s pioneering, to be sure (Megan Thee Stallion once pointed out that a female rapper would face a ton of criticism for rapping like Playboi Carti, and for all intents, it appears she was correct), and a boundary has been broken to allow women to branch out more stylistically, I can see Coi taking a lot more fire now — with this verse undermining much of the evidence that supporters could use to defend her.

It’ll be interesting to see how this Cypher will be received on social media as well as how it affects future installments and the ongoing debate about whether the Freshman Class even needs a Cypher anymore.

Watch the 2021 XXL Freshman Cypher above.

In April of 2020, international advocacy organization Global Citizen urged people to stay at home to stop the spread of COVID by tapping some of today’s biggest artists for their Together At Home livestream. Now, Global Citizen is announcing another livestream, this time aimed at urging major corporations and foundations to donate funds to deliver COVID vaccines to the vulnerable and help end global poverty.

Global Citizen Live is a 24-hour livestream filmed in several countries across six continents. Kicking off on Saturday, September 24, the concert will feature headliners Billie Eilish, Lorde, and Lizzo, among others, and take place in cities across the world like Lagos, Rio de Janeiro, New York City, Paris, London, Seoul, LA, and Sydney.

Along with Eilish, Lizzo, and Lorde, some other artists set to perform include Adam Lambert, Alessia Cara, Andrea Bocelli, Angélique Kidjo, BTS, Burna Boy, Camila Cabello, Coldplay, Christine And The Queens, Davido, Demi Lovato, DJ Snake, Doja Cat, Duran Duran, Ed Sheeran, Femi Kuti, Green Day, HER, Hugh Jackman & Deborra-lee Furness, Keith Urban, Lang Lang, Metallica, Rag’n’Bone Man, Ricky Martin, Shawn Mendes, The Lumineers, The Weeknd, Tiwa Savage, Usher, and more.

In a statement about Global Citizen Live‘s mission, Global Citizen CEO Hugh Evans detailed the devastating affects of COVID across the globe:

“COVID-19 has drastically reversed the progress toward achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals pushing upwards of 160 million people back into extreme poverty. There are now more than 40 million people on the brink of famine. Progress on climate change has halted, as the majority of the Fortune 500 fail to set science-based carbon reduction targets. We must rectify the damage done and hold world leaders and businesses accountable for ensuring that the entire world recovers from this pandemic together. ‘Equitable recovery’ is not an act of charity — it is the only way we can ensure a fighting chance at achieving a sustainable world free from extreme poverty.”

Echoing Evans’ statement, The Weeknd said he’s honored to join the livestream. “It is very important to me to be a part of this historic event to spread awareness and encourage action toward helping the people of Ethiopia during this devastating humanitarian crisis they are faced with,” he said. “It’ll be an honor to perform and help bring support to these citizens who are suffering so severely.”

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

Team USA’s Olympic roster will take on the WNBA’s All-Stars in the 2021 All-Star Game on Wednesday night. It’ll be the first time we see Dawn Staley’s team — in pursuit of a seventh consecutive gold medal — play in an exhibition game. They’ll play Australia and Nigeria later in the week.

While Team USA will draw attention, there’s a lot on the line for the game’s other participants, too. The event will be a warmup for Australian star center Liz Cambage, who is also set to play in Tokyo, as well as a first audition for 2024 Olympics hopefuls like Arike Ogunbowale, and a potential statement game for 2016 Team USA snub Candace Parker.

Here are a few things to watch for on ESPN when the game tips off from Vegas on July 14 at 7:00 p.m. ET.

1. Who does Team USA start?

With a team as deep as the U.S. Olympic roster, which features six of the last 11 WNBA MVP winners, every lineup is going to see some level of success. But earning a starting nod is an honor of its own.

In 2016, Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore, Tina Charles, and Brittney Griner started. Moore is not on the roster, but the other four are. It’ll be interesting to see if they remain in the starting lineup, even with the emergence of Jewell Loyd, Breanna Stewart, and A’ja Wilson in particular. Dawn Staley has a lot of choices to make. The good news for her is that it’s hard to make a bad one.

2. Will Liz Cambage play big minutes?

Cambage led all scorers at the 2016 Olympics with 23.5 points per game, but Australia fell in the quarterfinals to Serbia. No team is in Team USA’s realm, but Australia — led by WNBA players Leilani Mitchell, Rebecca Allen, Ezi Magbegor, Stephanie Talbot, and Alanna Smith — may have the best chance to upset them.

This could be a warmup for Cambage, who will get to see the USA squad twice in exhibition action in Vegas, before a possible gold medal showdown.

3. How are Team USA’s shots distributed?

One of the most difficult tasks for any superteam is having players understand their new roles. Staley’s group has 12 of the best scorers in the world (seven of the WNBA’s top 10), all capable of leading a team. But USA won’t thrive on pure isolation plays. It’ll need a system that balances all of its stars’ capabilities.

Playing pass-first guards like Chelsea Gray, Skylar Diggins-Smith or Sue Bird on the floor at any given time in the game feels like a must.

4. Will Tina Charles take over?

Before the season started, A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Elena Delle Donne, and Candace Parker’s names dominated the MVP conversation.

Since then, Jonquel Jones — who will compete as an All-Star — has asserted herself as the frontrunner, but Charles is inching closer and closer as the season wears on. The forward is leading the league in points per game at 26.3 per game, which is a 5.3-point lead over the next-best Jones. Though she isn’t firing as efficiently as Jones, she is making 46.8 percent of her shots from the field and 37 percent of her 3-pointers. That’s super solid, and a breakout showing in a matchup of the game’s best could open more eyes to the Mystics’ leader for MVP.

5. Will this be Arike Ogunbowale’s night?

Nneka Ogwumike was Team USA’s biggest snub, but she won’t compete for the All-Stars. Ogunbowale was the next-biggest cut, though, and will play. Last year’s WNBA leading scorer is just 24 years old but saw a few other players her age — including Napheesa Collier and Ariel Atkins — make the cut. That stings.

Ogunbowale — debatably the most clutch player in basketball right now — has never once in her life been shy of a big moment. If the game-winning shot in the 2018 Final Four wasn’t enough proof, the game-winning shot in the 2018 championship game damn sure was. She’s always ready when the lights are brightest, and this will be her first unofficial audition for the 2024 Olympics.

6. How will Candace Parker play against Team USA?

Parker’s already downplayed the importance of this game to her, and for good reason. She’s already one of the best basketball players of all-time. She has two season MVP awards, a Finals MVP, and a WNBA championship. Everything else is extra for her already legendary career.

But maybe things will feel a bit different after the ball is tipped. Her beef is, of course, not with her Team USA opponents, but rather, the people who chose to keep her off the 2016 roster. It could be hard for her not to want to go full-speed knowing they’re all watching.

At this point, it seems like everyone has their own podcast. We live in an era where celebrities are more accessible than ever, and podcasting is the most direct way to have the kinds of lengthy, unfiltered conversations that fans of any medium — sports, culture, etc. — cannot get enough of.

Basketball players are generally good about being candid and forthright, no matter the medium, but that’s especially true for players who have launched podcasts in recent years. On today’s Dime Breakdown, we decided to highlight some of the best NBA podcasts in the game right now. For example, if you’re a podcast listener and don’t subscribe to J.J. Redick’s “The Old Man and the Three,” or “Pull Up with C.J. McCollum,” or Kevin Durant’s podcast “The ETCs,” you’re missing out on endlessly fascinating and entertaining conversations about life as a basketball player and all the things that go into that, from what they do on the court to some of their pursuits off of it. Plus we showed some love to dudes like Gilbert Arenas, Matt Barnes, and Stephen Jackson, the retired players who have made the smooth transition into life as podcasters.

After running through those, we wanted to identify the players who we think could thrive if they ever decided to get into podcasting. The list could go on for hours, but in our eyes, there are a number of guys who really stand out among the rest.