GoneTrending

The upcoming biopic about Cher’s life is being announced as only Cher would do it — via a caps lock tweet. On the day before the icon’s 75th (!) birthday, she broke the news on Twitter, and a press release followed shortly after, letting fans know that Universal Pictures will handle the release of the film. She also shared that Judy Craymer and Gary Goetzman, who produced both of the Mamma Mia! films will be producing and Eric Roth, writer behind films like Forrest Gump and A Star Is Born has signed on to write the project. According to a press release, Cher will also be co-producing the film.

That’s a pretty star-studded lineup already, who can hopefully do justice to the pop diva’s tumultuous life. Judy Craymer commented that she and Goetzman feel inspired by Cher’s talent, vision, and success, and are thrilled to work on the project.

“Gary and I are thrilled to be working with Cher again and this time bringing her empowering and true-life odyssey to the big screen. One cannot help but be drawn to and inspired by Cher’s larger than life talent, fortitude, unique wit, warmth, and vision. Her unparalleled success in music film and tv has inspired generations. We could not be happier to tell her story to cinema audiences.”

That’s all the info for now, but keep an eye out for casting news and other updates as the project progresses.

2KBaby became a name worth knowing back in 2019 thanks to his breakout single, “Old Streets” — his first and only Gold-certified release and to this day his most popular song. Jump to the present and the Louisville native is back in action with his latest track, “Great White,” for which he recently shared a music video. In it, 2KBaby plays an unforgiving assailant, his gang robbing a man of a large amount of money and taking down a cop who attempts to stop him and his crew in their tracks.

The track is the latest in a string of releases that 2KBaby has shared since he dropped his debut project, Pregame Rituals. G Herbo, YFN Lucci, and Lil Durk lent a hand to the full-length effort, which delivered more of what 2KBaby had to show as an artist. “My music can be therapeutic, it can amp you up, it can make you cry,” the rapper said in a press release. “I’m tryna just make pop sh*t,” adding, “Music that’s gonna sell out stadiums. Global music that can reach everybody.”

You can watch 2KBaby’s video above.

2KBaby is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Something happened to Geraldo Rivera, and it’s not something bad. Since the 2020 election, a media figure who at best lightly chastised people like Trump when they went too far — and only infrequently, at that — has gone rogue. He’s said he supported the impeachment of his good friend, the 45th president. He’s snapped at Charlie Kirk and sparred with Don Bongino. He’s also said not-great things, but it’s he’s doing better than anyone else on his side.

On Wednesday he went arguably farther than he ever has: He criticized Israel on Fox News. For the last two weeks, the world has watched in horror as war has exploded between Israel and Palestine, the former causing exponentially more death and destruction than the latter. On Sunday, John Oliver made waves by daring to come and accuse Israel of “war crimes” — something that has rarely been said outright before.

Rivera, speaking with Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum, didn’t go that far, but he went right up to the line.

“We have dozens of Palestinian children who have been killed in the last week with American bombs,” Rivera told Fox News audiences. He called out the U.S. for “providing many of the weapons Israel is using today to kill Palestinian civilians without even demanding a ceasefire.”

Rivera then uttered three words that are like holy water to Fox News vampires: “Tlaib is right,” referring to Rashida Tlaib, the first Palestinian-American elected to Congress and an outspoken critic of Israel’s actions right now. That the weapons being used to kill civilians came in part from America, Rivera said, “makes us complicit in an ongoing crime against humanity.”

Rivera was speaking from experience. During the segment, he called the Gaza Strip under Israeli occupation “one of the most menacing places on Earth that I’ve ever reported from.” He continued:

“Everyone and everything going into and out of Gaza is controlled by Israel. Electricity, fuel, airspace, ports, cell phone service, even who gets to farm those meager fields. It’s effectively one of the world’s largest prison camps and it is being bombed with bombs supplied by the United States. It’s outrageous that we gave Israel these hundreds of millions of dollars worth of weapons without insisting on a ceasefire now.”

Rivera received some pushback, of course. Conservative pundit Katie Pavlich accused him of supporting Hamas’ violent attacks on Israeli civilians. Rivera tried to go back to his original point. “They have no place to run. Where are they going to go?!” Rivera replied, adding that “an Israeli F-16 going 500 miles an hour is going to kill civilians.” He also argued that Israel firing into the Gaza Strip is bound to result in civilian casualties. “You shoot an artillery round from a tank and you expect it to land only on the military version of Hamas?”

Surely few would expect that Geraldo Rivera would ever go completely against the Fox News party line, but then stranger things have happened these days.

The Grizzlies played host to the Spurs on Wednesday night in the first play-in game for the Western Conference, with the winner moving on to play for the 8-seed and the loser going home. After a quarter of play, it looked as though we were in for a repeat of the East’s 9-10 matchup. Memphis ran out to a 38-19 lead going into the second, as San Antonio had no answers on either end of the floor for Jonas Valanciunas and Dillon Brooks.

However, the Spurs found their footing in the second, tying the game at one point thanks to a 22-3 run and ultimately only trailing by seven at the end of the first half. Dejounte Murray, Patty Mills, Jakob Poeltl, and Keldon Johnson all did their part in the second quarter run, and suddenly, we had a competitive game on our hands.

In the second half, it was once again a back-and-forth affair with Memphis in front most of the time, quickly ripping the lead back away from San Antonio any time the Spurs made a run to take a brief advantage. Valanciunas was nothing short of sensational, dominating inside on both ends with 23 points, 23 rebounds, and three blocks. The Grizzlies saw their lead evaporate every time he sat on the bench, and when he would return, it would grow again — with the end result being Jonas being a plus-26 on the night in a 100-96 win.

Brooks finished the game as Memphis’ leading scorer with 24 points, as he continues to impress with his two-way play and aggression on both ends. Brooks gave DeMar DeRozan fits for much of the night and on the offensive end he was in attack mode when the Grizzlies needed him to create some offense.

Closing things out was Ja Morant, who had a slow middle portion of the game but came alive in the fourth with some crucial buckets. He finished with 21 points, a team high six assists, and a highlight dunk early, as he is known to do.

For the Spurs, they just couldn’t find enough buckets against Memphis’ defense to make any of their runs stick. DeMar DeRozan and Rudy each had 20 points, but both needed 21 shots to get there. Murray had a triple double with 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists, but as just 4-for-17 from the field, and as a team they shot 35.1 percent from the floor. Memphis will now move on to face the loser of the highly anticipated nightcap between the Lakers and Warriors for the 8-seed, while San Antonio will go home for the second straight year without making the playoffs.

Texas’ own Big Jade has been moving up in the hip-hop world. She recently released Pressure, whose track “I’ll Tell You What” now has a new video. It finds her posted up outside a store with a few of her friends while she delivers sharp raps. “A lot of h*es not in their bag, they’re in their bed, these b*tches lazy,” she proclaims. “Gotta watch your circle, everybody ain’t happy for you, n****s’ shady.”

It’s a highlight of Pressure, which boasts head-knocking production by BeatKing and guest appearances from fellow Texans OMB Bloodbath, Queendom Come, and more. Big Jade had began catching attention long before the album’s arrival, including joining Erica Banks in their eye-catching video for “Dem Girlz.” Jade also impressed with a number of freestyles and singles that include “Gucci Bag,” “Bonnet Freestyle,” “No Hook,” and “Groupies, all of which appeared in Uproxx’s weekly “Best New Hip-Hop This Week” column.

You can watch the video above.

Pressure is out now via Alamo Records. Get it here.

Erica Banks is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

ASAP Rocky has been teasing music from his upcoming fourth album, rumored to be titled All Smiles, for the better part of two years, but he’s been fairly tight-lipped about what, and who, will be on it. But during a recent interview with GQ, the Harlem rapper shared one person fans can expect to hear on the album.

That person is The Smiths’ legendary/notorious lead vocalist Morrissey, who is these days as known for his beloved music as he is for his controversial statements. “Anything you need him to do, he show up and do,” Rocky said about the singer. The two have spent the last year working remotely on the album, which Rocky described as a “ghetto love tale” and “way more mature” than his previous projects. The rapper previously spoke about his desire to work with Morrissey during a 2019 sit-down with Peter Rosenberg.

“I might have to f*ck with Morrissey on some Smiths sh*t,” Rocky said at the time. “Make some emo, real, retro-infusion, motherf*ckin’ 2018 sh*t, man.” Rocky also confirmed that he’s at least talked to Rihanna — who he declared as the “love of my life” — about the album, which he said is 90% complete. “I think it’s important to have somebody that you can bounce those creative juices and ideas off of.”

The Smiths is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The deadly MAGA insurrection of Jan. 6 found violent Trump supporters attempting to overturn the a fair and just election, but they had another objective: get — and maybe even hang — Mike Pence. Not that you would know it if you talked to him. The former vice president has, just like most people in his party, downplayed the events that nearly got him killed. Heck, not even his brother seems to care.

On Wednesday, the House finally voted on launching a commission to investigate the events of that fateful day. It passed, but not with flying colors: Only 35 Republicans voted for it, with 175 against it. Among them, according to The Huffington Post, was Greg Pence, representative of Indiana and slightly older brother to Trump’s number two.

“Hanging Judge Nancy Pelosi is hellbent on pushing her version of partisan justice complete with a hand-picked jury that will carry out her pre-determined political execution of Donald Trump before law enforcement officials have completed their investigation,” the older Pence said in a statement to The Washington Post.

As HuffPo points out, using the words “hanging” and “execution” to decry a probe into an incident that nearly led to his younger brother being hung and killed is…interesting. He also says nothing about a sibling who was left to die by his two-time running mate. Indeed, Trump told his unhinged supporters that Pence the Younger could simply refuse to certify the 2020 election…which he could not, even if that’s what he wanted.

Upon finding out about Greg Pence’s decision, people found it pretty cold.

That said, others pointed out that Mike himself would also probably be against a commission into something that nearly led to his painful death.

Given the number of House Republicans who opposed the bill, it seems likely that it won’t pass the Senate. If so, they’ll be sending a curious message to the officers who saved their butts that day.

(Via HuffPo)

On Wednesday, the House did the right thing: It passed a bill to investigate the MAGA insurrection of January 6. It did so without much Republican help; 175 GOP representatives voted against it, a number of them having gone on record saying they wouldn’t participate in an inquiry into a deadly siege that left five dead. In the lead-up, those lawmakers received their own form of pushback. Democratic representative Tim Ryan scorched colleagues across the aisle who refuse to support it. And so did the officers whose lives were put in danger that fateful day.

On Wednesday, a letter was sent to the House chiefs calling out Republican lawmakers for their reluctance. Though no names were attached, it was printed on United States Capitol Police letterhead and, according to The Huffington Post, it represents some 40 to 50 officers. And it did not mince words, expressing “profound disappointment” that the likes of Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell have tried to stall the investigation.

The letter goes onto discuss how Capitol officers “were subjected to hours and hours of physical trauma which has led to months of mental anguish.” Indeed, of the five people who died on Jan. 6, one was a police officiers, Brian Sicknick. Two other officers died by suicide in the days following.

It goes on:

“It is inconceivable that some of the Members we protect, would downplay the events of January 6. Member safety was dependent upon the heroic actions of USCP. It is a privileged assumption for Members to have the point of view that ‘it wasn’t that bad. That privilege exists because the brave men and women of the USCP protected you, the Members.”

“Unfortunately this letter comes to you anonymously, because as U.S. Capitol Police Officers, we are expected to remain neutral and do our jobs with honor and integrity,” it reads. “It’s unfortunate that our ‘bosses’ [in Congress] are not held to the same standard that we, the USCP, are.”

After the letter went viral, USCP top brass formally distanced themselves from the letter, underlining the fact that the organization “does NOT take positions on legislation” and claiming they weren’t even sure which officers wrote the letter.

Nevertheless, as per HuffPo, Rep. Jamie Raskin confirmed that the letter’s authors were indeed members of Capitol Police.

Did the letter arrive in time to change any hearts and minds? We may never know. But there’s still a vote in the Senate, and we’ll see what Republicans there think about the men and women in blue who protect them.

(Via HuffPo)

A new bill passed in Tennessee and signed into law by Governor Bill Lee on Monday may be less blatantly anti-transgender than bathroom bills attempting to ban transgender people from using the restroom that most closely aligns with their gender, but that doesn’t mean it actually makes sense.

House Bill 1182 requires businesses that welcome transgender people to use the bathroom of their choice to post a sign warning people of their policy. The details of the sign are very specific: It must be at least eight inches high and six inches wide. The top one-third of the sign must read “NOTICE” in yellow text over a red background. And in the other two-thirds it must read, in boldface, block letters, the following statement: “THIS FACILITY MAINTAINS A POLICY OF ALLOWING THE USE OF RESTROOMS BY EITHER BIOLOGICAL SEX, REGARDLESS OF THE DESIGNATION ON THE RESTROOM.”

“We want a look that evokes both the moral panic of the present and the legacy of institutionalized prejudice many… https://t.co/P7Ap8vKqCX

— Gillian Branstetter (@GBBranstetter)
1621382533.0

Human Rights Campaign President Alphonso David said in a statement that Tennessee’s bill rolls back the clock on equality and is harmful to transgender Tennesseans.

“Denying transgender people the ability to access a bathroom consistent with their gender identity is degrading and dehumanizing — and can have real health and safety consequences,” wrote David.

Here’s the thing: Transgender people have been using the bathroom that aligns with their gender without most of us even noticing. This is simply a solution in search of a problem.

Bathroom bills are purportedly designed to protect people from predators (presumably male predators who could pretend to be trans to use the women’s room) but there are two big problems with that:

---

1) States that have laws protecting trans people’s rights to using the bathroom of their choice have not seen any kind of increase in bathroom predator issues. A 2014 report from Media Matters found that experts from 12 states with anti-discrimination laws protecting transgender people’s right to use gender-aligned bathrooms—some of those laws more than a decade old at the time—found no issues stemming from transgender people peeing where they want. These experts include law enforcement officials, government employees, and advocates for victims of sexual assault, and they overwhelmingly concurred that there is no basis for the fear behind anti-trans bathroom bills.

2) If predatory behavior in a bathroom is truly the concern, making transgender people use the restroom that aligns with their genitals at birth would actually make it easier, not harder, for male predators to sneak into women’s bathrooms. The logic some people seem to be missing in their push to make people use the bathroom of their assigned sex at birth is that most transgender people’s appearance more closely aligns with their gender identity, not their sex at birth. Most trans men present as men. Most trans women present as women. Forcing a trans man to use the women’s bathroom and vice versa means making people who are visually the opposite sex into male and female bathrooms.

To illustrate this point, here are some transgender individuals who some people think should have to use the restroom opposite of the gender they appear.

This is fitness coach Cody Harmon, who is a trans man. Anyone who thinks he should be forced to use a women’s bathroom is not thinking this through.

Aryan Pasha is a bodybuilder and also a trans man. Should he have to use the women’s bathroom because his biological sex at birth was female?

And on the flip side, do you want to tell this woman she has to use the men’s room?

How about her? If you walked into the men’s room and saw her there, wouldn’t you assume she was in the “wrong” bathroom?

People who want trans folks to use the bathroom of their assigned/biological sex at birth are the same people who would throw a fit if they saw trans people actually use those bathrooms. Because what they’re wanting is for trans men to use women’s bathrooms and vice versa, thereby putting men in women’s bathrooms. Because the bathroom use complaints simply don’t make logical sense.

Not all transgender people fully transition, of course, and trans people may be in various stages of transition, but the fact remains that most trans people do present as their gender and feel more comfortable (and safe) using the restroom accordingly. (There are also non-binary trans people who may present as male one day and female another, or who may appear totally androgynous. The point being is you can’t judge a transgender person based on their appearance.)

The idea that someone might pretend to be trans to be able to enter a women’s restroom as a man isn’t backed up by reality, and even if someone did do that, it wouldn’t be transgender people’s fault. There’s no reason to punish transgender people for what a predator might try to do.

Bills like the Tennessee bathroom sign one are designed to make transgender people feel like they shouldn’t exist. But they do exist. They always have, and they’ve been using the same bathrooms as cisgender people this whole time. They are also designed to arouse suspicion about trans people, which is patently unfair. People just want to pee and poo in peace. Truly. When you know transgender people personally, it’s easier to understand how utterly ridiculous these bathroom laws are.

You don’t have to understand someone’s identity to accept them for who they are. You don’t have to personally relate to someone’s story to show them basic respect. These kinds of laws are unnecessary and hurtful, and if your lawmakers are pushing for such legislation, ask them to stop. Urge your Senators to pass the Equality Act already passed by the House. And contact your state representatives and ask them to support trans people’s right to be themselves.

Everyone deserves at least that much.

The art of being in a band is a difficult one to master, and even plenty of the best groups come to an end way before fans want them to do so. One such excellent band was LVL Up, who opted to go their separate ways back in 2018, much to the disappointment of fans and the industry at large. After eight years together, their last official album was Return To Love, released in 2016.

Nowadays, one of the band’s former members, guitarist and vocalist Mike Caridi has his own project called The Glow, which features former LVL Up drummer Greg Rutkin as well. The Glow, however, was not invited to play at this year’s Lollapalooza festival. But who was instead?? A LVL UP imposter, maybe! The new band, who opted to spell their name with vowels, as Level Up, appear in the lower lines of the festival poster, a coincidence (or not) that immediately caught the attention of eagle-eyed LVL UP fans — and the band itself.

The band jokingly posted the lineup on Twitter earlier today after the festival was announced, calling on the highest powers of the law to execute a cease and desist for them. “Cease & desist @lawandordertv @JudgeJudy,” they tweeted, tagging both the formidable judge, known for settling small claims disputes, and the team at Law And Order. Just a little indie music humor for you on a Wednesday night! In the meantime, check out the The Glow’s newest singles “Love Only” and “Heavy Glow” below.