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Morgan Wallen made headlines in 2020 for an unfortunate reason: He was set to be a musical guest on Saturday Night Live, but was ousted after videos of him at a maskless party surfaced. Wallen did end up making his SNL debut on the show a few weeks later, though, an appearance that included a sketch about that fateful party.

Here in 2021, though, Wallen is making news for better reasons: His latest album, Dangerous: The Double Album, has debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated January 23, and it did so thanks to a historic week of streaming.

Of the 265,000 equivalent album units Wallen’s album earned, 184,000 were streaming equivalent albums units, which is equal to 240.18 million on-demand streams of the album’s songs. That’s the biggest streaming week ever for a country album, as it more than doubled the previous record holder: Luke Combs’ What You See If What You Get racked up 102.26 million streams during the week ending October 29, 2020, the week that Combs reissued the album with bonus songs, bringing the total to 23 tracks.

The fact that Dangerous features 30 tracks likely helped this number grow so large, since the count is based on total streams across all the album’s songs. Billboard notes, though, that “even if the album were trimmed down to the 18 least-streamed tracks (in the week ending Jan. 14), their sum of 105.08 million would still beat Combs’ former record.”

While the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine hasn’t gone as smoothly as anyone would like, the actual data from the vaccine’s effectiveness has given scientists a lot of confidence about what will happen once more people have gotten the vaccine itself. With the pandemic still ongoing and the new UK variant worrying scientists about its increased contagiousness any good news on the vaccine front is welcome, and how the vaccine itself has performed appears to be that good news.

According to a report in the New York Times, the two vaccines currently being used across the country from Moderna and Pfizer are even more effective than first thought when the numbers from their trials were made public. And though some reactions and other stories about people getting vaccinated have seen considerable headlines and press among detractors, early data from studies of its effectiveness show it may be one of the safest ever created when compared to vaccines for other diseases.

A doctor described the public opinion of the coronavirus as “underselling the vaccine” and the report detailed why medical experts are so excited about the results they’ve seen. Here’s the Times summary of what we know so far:

The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines — the only two approved in the U.S. — are among the best vaccines ever created, with effectiveness rates of about 95 percent after two doses. That’s on par with the vaccines for chickenpox and measles. And a vaccine doesn’t even need to be so effective to reduce cases sharply and crush a pandemic.

If anything, the 95 percent number understates the effectiveness, because it counts anyone who came down with a mild case of Covid-19 as a failure. But turning Covid into a typical flu — as the vaccines evidently did for most of the remaining 5 percent — is actually a success. Of the 32,000 people who received the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine in a research trial, do you want to guess how many contracted a severe Covid case? One.

There’s still, of course, a lot we don’t know about how the vaccine works long-term and whether people can still spread coronavirus after they’ve been vaccinated and are not experiencing symptoms and actually being infected themselves. That’s why those that do get the vaccine will still need to wear masks and continue to practice social distancing in an effort to keep others safe while the vaccine goes to work.

But the numbers scientists are seeing are absolutely encouraging, and though rollout has been slow there are more vaccines being tested and could hit the market later in the year. It would be welcome news for the millions of people eager to get the vaccine and hope to resume a more normal life in the coming months, and perhaps put those at ease who are still skeptical of vaccines in general.

In the wake of police murdering George Floyd in Minnesota, massive protests launched around the country and around the world to once again shine light on systemic racism in policing and the issue of police brutality — and the refusal of the system to hold officers accountable for their actions.

The NBA world was particularly impacted by Floyd’s murder because of the connection Floyd had to Stephen Jackson, a lifelong friend who referred to Floyd as his “twin.” Jackson became a vocal and forward leader in Minnesota after Floyd was killed and called on many of his friends in the NBA and beyond to amplify what they were doing and bring more attention and resources to the fight ahead. The response from the NBA and WNBA communities was swift and forceful, and has continued in the months since.

Jackson recently sat down with Etan Thomas on “The Rematch” podcast to speak on all of that and spoke on some of the incredible assistance his friends have provided the Floyd family in the months since, including Kyrie Irving purchasing the family a new home (the 25:20 mark of the above video).

“She’s getting so much love from not just us, but from people all around the world who are showing support,” Jackson said. “I’m just continuing to do what I said I was going to do; I said I was going to be my brother’s keeper and take care of his daughter and make sure that her next days are her best days. I had a lot of my friends — Kyrie Irving bought them a house. Lil Wayne’s manager bought them a Mercedes Benz. Barbra Streisand gave them stock in Disney.

“I think God has definitely blessed her. Right now she’s doing the best she’s ever done; she’s happy. We’re just waiting for all this trial stuff to get out of the way, where she don’t have to keep reliving the situation and she can go about living her life and being happy.”

Jackson promised to take care of Floyd’s daughter, Gianna, and seems to be doing just that, and it’s nice to hear the support she has received from so many to help set her up with some stability after such a traumatic event. Irving in particular has taken it upon himself recently to be more active in the community, from providing tuition to students at HBCUs to this gesture of purchasing a home for Floyd, as he has become more and more active and vocal about inspiring and creating change.

The coronavirus had a drastic impact on most parts of the world, but New Zealand stands out as a country that has fared extraordinarily well in dealing with COVID-19. It was only a matter of months before the island nation ended the pandemic domestically, and there are currently just 85 active cases (none of which are being treated in hospitals) out of 1,906 total confirmed cases. So, life is looking closer to normal in the country, which explains why it was just able to host its largest concert since the start of the pandemic.

Popular New Zealand group Six60 performed in Waitangi to an audience of about 20,000 people. Metro reports that there were no social distancing measures put in place and the band’s Chris Mac even interacted with the audience.

Six60 singer Matiu Walters told local publication the Northern Advocate, “Being here and able to get together while the rest of the world basically can’t has really given us a good appreciation of how well our country has done in managing COVID and just how lucky we are. I feel really proud that we have got our act together so well on COVID.”

The show was the first of a brief national tour for Six60, which will also take the band to Hastings, New Plymouth, Christchurch, Wellington, and Hamilton.

Meanwhile, there’s optimism that concerts will return to the US at some point in 2021, with Dr. Anthony Fauci suggesting that some venues could be able to open in the fall.

Peaky Blinders will be back for a sixth and final season, but there may be more of the story to tell elsewhere. According to several reports, the show will return for one last run with the gang before finishing its time on the BBC.

The Hollywood Reporter wrote Monday that production has begun on a final season, with additional precautions to keep people safe during the pandemic. But showrunner Steven Knight and executive producer Caryn Mandabach seem confident that the story, which stars Cillian Murphy and involves the dealings of the titular English gang, will not end once the BBC show wraps up.

“Peaky is back and with a bang,” said Knight. “After the enforced production delay due to the COVID pandemic, we find the family in extreme jeopardy and the stakes have never been higher. We believe this will be the best series of all and are sure that our amazing fans will love it. While the TV series will be coming to an end, the story will continue in another form.”

Executive producer Caryn Mandabach added: “Along with our wonderful, supportive, partners at BBC and Netflix, we have been working diligently to ensure we can get Peaky safely back into production; the safety of our cast and crew is always our priority. Thank you to all the Peaky fans who have been so unwaveringly supportive and patient. Steve’s scripts are incredible and mark the end of an epic story that has entranced audiences since it first started in 2013, but the world of Peaky Blinders will most definitely live on.”

Whether that “form” is a movie or a new spinoff show isn’t made clear just yet, but it’s good news for everyone involved in the ensemble show as well as fans who have discovered it on streaming services or while it’s aired on the BBC. Making anything in the age of the coronavirus pandemic is difficult, not to mention expensive, but it seems those behind Peaky Blinders intend to give the show a fitting sendoff before moving on to whatever’s next for the gang.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been one of the pleasant surprises of the early NBA season, as they have gotten off to a 6-7 start and seen continued positive growth from young players like Collin Sexton and Darius Garland, as well as a defensive leap from the entire team, spearheaded by the play of Larry Nance Jr.

One name missing from that list of promising young players on the Cavs is Kevin Porter Jr., who has yet to play this season due to personal reasons but recently rejoined the team to sit on the bench and seemed to be working his way back to getting on the court. Porter Jr. was arrested this offseason after a single car crash for improper handling of a firearm and marijuana possession but had all of those charges dismissed and was getting himself back into playing shape.

However, his tenure with the Cavs seems to have come to an end, as his return to the team was not as cheery as it may have seemed. According to The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd and Joe Vardon, the swingman learned that his locker had been moved to make room for new acquisition Taurean Prince to take over his old space and threw quite the tantrum at just about everyone, including the coach and GM.

Porter, 20, who has not played this season due to personal issues, grew angry when he entered the locker room and realized the team gave his old locker to Taurean Prince, who was acquired in a blockbuster trade Wednesday.

Sources said Porter, whose locker was moved to the wall where the younger, end-of-bench players reside, began yelling and at one point threw food.

Sources said general manager Koby Altman came into the locker room and confronted Porter, and the player remained combative with his boss. The Cavs spent the weekend trying to trade him.

Now, one could understand frustration with having your locker moved without being consulted, but also, yelling, throwing food, and going after the guy who makes roster decisions probably isn’t the wisest way to go about that situation. A year ago, Porter Jr. was a player Cavs fans believed could end up being one of the best of their young bunch, as he averaged 10 points and 3.2 rebounds per game as a rookie, coming on particularly strong in the second half of the season before the stoppage.

This season he’s yet to play and may not see the floor for a second season in Cleveland, and it remains to be seen what his trade value is right now given his talent mixed with this latest off court incident. As an aside, it’s nice that someone on the Cavs is carrying J.R. Smith’s legacy on by throwing food in anger.

More and more, Oscar winners and nominees are joining the MCU, and the names keep getting bigger. Angelina Jolie will (eventually) make her Marvel Studios debut in The Eternals, and former Batman Christian Bale will portray the villainous Korg the Conqueror in Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love And Thunder. Now, the MCU has reportedly nabbed a few new A-lister editions, one of whom will make his first superpowered turn while joining Oscar Isaac in Disney+’s Moon Knight series, and the other who has already cameo-d twice for properties associated with Marvel comics.

One of those properties happened to be a straight-up MCU entry, Thor: Ragnarok, so yes, we’re talking about Matt Damon, who made a surprise cameo as a Loki cosplayer of sorts while he portrayed the role of the trickster in an Asgardian theater company production. Damon’s rendition was written as much more sympathetic to the plight of Loki than conventional Marvel Studios lore has painted him, and now, Australia’s news.com is reporting that Damon is quarantining in Australia while preparing for a mystery role in Thor: Love And Thunder alongside Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson, Natalie Portman, and possibly the real Loki (Tom Hiddleston) as well.

The outlet speculates whether Damon will reprise his Ragnarok role again while noting that quarantine might be too much trouble unless he’s playing “a larger role.” However, I’d wager that any excuse (even another mere cameo) to hop onboard a private jet and get the heck out of the U.S. would be worth it, even with the quarantine involved. And who knows, his role could totally go off the rails and be something completely different. He could even pick up a variation of his Deadpool 2 yokel-cameo character, given that the Merc with a Mouth is also now part of the MCU. Anything could happen! We are truly in the Wild Wild West these days.

Speaking of wild and western, Ethan Hawke is reportedly following his fire-breathing performance in the proto-Western The Good Lord Bird with a role in Disney+’s upcoming Moon Knight series. According to Hollywood Reporter, Hawke will be stepping onboard as lead villain in opposition to Oscar Isaac’s protagonist. Of course, this development is stirring up how Hawke previously drew a distinction between “a fine superhero movie” and “a great movie” while talking about Logan to FilmStage (via ComicBook.com). He later clarified to Collider that he was “a comic book geek… The idea that I’m the one criticizing them is a joke.” He also emphasized his desire to teach his son that “being a geek is being real. That’s what it means: I’m gonna be real.”

Well, it looks like Ethan Hawke will be getting both geeky and real, and Matt Damon’s gonna be doing the same, once again.

(Via Australia’s news.com & Hollywood Reporter)

Snoop Dogg and Eminem have been in a bit of a feud lately, which began with Snoop leaving Eminem off his list of the ten best rappers ever. Eminem admitted those comments were the reason why he decided to diss Snoop on “Zeus.” It seems this beef has blown over, though, as Snoop indicated recently that everything between he and Eminem is alright. Now, though, he has spoken on the matter a bit more expansively and reiterated that sentiment.

During a recent interview with Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live, Snoop answered some viewer questions, and one person asked what his response was to Eminem calling him out on “Zeus.” Snoop replied, “We still friends. I think that’s family business and I don’t want to make it more than what it is. He said what he said, I respect that, we just going to keep it right there. It’s family business.”

The “Zeus” lyric in question goes, “As far as squashin’ beef, I’m used to people knockin’ me / But, just not in my camp / I’m diplomatic ’cause I’m tryna be / Last thing I need is Snoop doggin’ me / Man, dog, you was like a damn god to me / Man, not really / I had ‘dog’ backwards.”

As the days pass and the arrests mount, we’re learning more and more about the people involved in the MAGA riot at the capitol that left five people dead at the US Capitol earlier in the month. And that includes just what the insurrectionists did after they breached the capitol and what they’ve done in the aftermath of the coup attempt.

And according to Politico, at least one of those self-described “patriots” attempted a bit of espionage that has a lot of people on social media making jokes about Burn After Reading. According to the report, a woman stole a laptop from Nancy Pelosi’s office during the attack and tried to sell it to Russia. The FBI is currently investigating a Pennsylvania woman, Riley June Williams, who entered the Capitol during the January 6 attack, took either a laptop or hard drive from Pelosi’s office and hoped to sell it to Russia.

According to the affidavit, a witness who spoke to authorities claimed to have seen a video of Williams “taking a laptop computer or hard drive from Speaker Pelosi’s office.””[Witness 1] stated that WILLIAMS intended to send the computer device to a friend in Russia, who then planned to sell the device to SVR, Russia’s foreign intelligence service,” the agent noted. “According to [Witness 1], the transfer of the computer device to Russia fell through for unknown reasons and WILLIAMS still has the computer device or destroyed it.”

“This matter remains under investigation,” the agent concludes.

While actual acts of treason are apparently all the rage these days, it is a pretty serious matter. Who can really know what’s on the laptop, of course, and Russia has actively worked to hack the US government and gain access to all sorts of information in recent years. But given the litany of problems we collectively have these days moments for levity are scarce, and so a bit of botched espionage was a chance for people on social media to make jokes about Burn After Reading.

Burn After Reading is, of course, a very good Cohen Brothers movie from 2008 that featured an embarrassment of acting talent and hilariously bad espionage. Two gym employees find some sensitive data in their hands thanks to an unemployed former CIA agent, and hijinks ensue as they try their best to sell it. It had a lot of great lines, and a lot of them popped up on Twitter after the news broke.

And much like Sunday’s Master and Commander incident, it was also a good opportunity for people to just talk about a movie they like and feel is underrated.

If you’re choosing your screening options based on recent online events, you’re certainly in luck this week. Burn After Reading is currently streaming on Peacock, and it makes for a nice follow-up to a movie about the Napoleonic Wars, if you need it.

[via Politico]

If you had to name one defining artist of the streaming era, a strong argument could be made for Drake. He was Spotify’s most-streamed artist of the 2010s. On top of that, he was the platform’s most-played artist in 2015, 2016, and 2018, and his three years on top of the year-end tally are more than any other artist has had.

Now, it looks like he has hit another amazing streaming milestone that further sets him apart from the rest: Chart Data reports that Drake is the first artist to reach 50 billion streams across all his credited songs on Spotify.

That claim is supported by ChartMasters, whose data indicates that as of January 16, 2021, songs on which Drake is credited as a lead artist have accrued 35,704,203,269 streams. Meanwhile, songs on which Drake is listed as a featured artist have 14,297,795,559 total streams. That adds up to 50,001,998,828 (50 billion with about an extra 2 million added for good measure).

ChartMasters also notes that of Drake’s 222 songs on Spotify, 209 (nearly all of them) have eclipsed 10 million streams, 91 of them have topped 100 million streams, and three are at over a billion streams. Additionally, Drake’s “One Dance” is at about 1.964 billion Spotify streams as of January 18, so if it hits 2 billion streams (which seems likely), it will be his first song to hit 2 billion and only the fourth ever. It’s currently behind Ed Sheeran’s “Shape Of You” (2.692 billion), Post Malone and 21 Savage’s “Rockstar” (2.098 billion), and Tones And I’s “Dance Monkey” (2.044 billion).

Drake had a huge 2020 on Spotify as well. Bad Bunny was the platform’s most-played artist of the year, but Drake came in at second.

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