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50 Cent is looking to set the record straight on his political alignments after his offhand joke was taken as a literal endorsement of Donald Trump. When 50 posted about Joe Biden’s proposed tax plan and said he would be voting for Trump on Instagram, not only were fans quick to criticize him but so was his ex Chelsea Handler, who offered to pay off his taxes if only he’d reverse course and endorse Biden instead. After Handler was invited onto The Tonight Show to talk about the incident, 50 clarified his feelings on Trump and made a cryptic accusation.

After a quick explainer for host Jimmy Fallon, the comedian explained that the 62% tax rate 50 posted to Instagram wasn’t actually a part of Biden’s tax plan — instead, it represented the maximum tax a New York resident could pay in total before deductions and so forth — and further extended her offer beyond just paying off 50’s tax bill to giving their relationship another shot. However, 50 posted a clip of her appearance on The Tonight Show and seemingly backtracked on his previous position.

“F*ck Donald Trump,” he wrote. “I never liked him. For all I know, he had me set up and had my friend Angel Fernandez killed but that’s history.” 50 also posted an updated screenshot of his first Instagram post, which was blurred and flagged by the service for sharing political content that was missing context. “If Trump lose this election he is going to jail,” 50 mused.

See 50 cent’s posts above.

The college basketball season is set to begin in just over a month, but a number of the opening tournaments that were expected to be played in Orlando — but had yet to be finalized — will not be taking place.

Seth Davis of The Athletic brought word on Monday that ESPN was no longer pursuing their planned bubble tipoff tournaments in Orlando as ESPN Events and the various schools were unable to agree on health and safety protocols for the tournaments. The 10 events, which featured more than two dozen programs, will no longer work towards being finalized to allow the teams to seek new scheduling options with a month to go before the season.

According to Clint Overby, the VP of ESPN Events, the issues arose from a few key sticking points in negotiations about testing protocols, namely ESPN’s insistence on following CDC guidelines while the schools wanted to go by their conference guidelines, which in some cases were more relaxed, as he told Davis.

“We’ve decided to redirect our efforts to be sure the teams have enough time to make other plans,” Clint Overby, vice president of ESPN Events, told The Athletic. “At the end of the day our bias was toward safety and making sure that what we pulled off was in the best interests of the sport. In the absence of those things, we decided we’re better off letting schools do their own thing.”

…

The plans broke down mainly because ESPN was trying to abide by guidelines handed down by the Centers for Disease Control and the NCAA, which are more restrictive than the protocols many conferences are planning to implement. The biggest point of contention was ESPN’s desire to stick by the guideline stating that anyone who has tested positive for coronavirus must be re-tested after that person has been clear for 90 days. Several schools balked at the idea of retesting players that soon. “The 90-day testing protocol became the key sticking point,” Overby said. “Once we laid that out there were individual schools who couldn’t agree because their conference rules are more open-ended with respect to when you test someone again who has contracted the virus.”

There were also issues of how they would proceed with contact tracing after a positive test, but what became clear was they would not be able to find common ground to play the tournaments with all of the teams and, as such, they felt it was best to leave the schools to their own devices to tipoff the season. The difference in the NCAA and CDC protocols and those of each conference also show how there are already cracks in the plan to begin the college hoops season, with each conference creating its own guidelines and trying to navigate playing an indoor sports season for the first time.

We have already seen numerous postponements and cancellations of games in college football due to internal outbreaks on teams, and college basketball will surely face similar hurdles. What remains to be seen is how they handle tracing and testing given the exposure risk for an indoor sport is even greater than an outdoor sport, especially given the consistent proximity and contact of players on the basketball court — even moreso than in football. That ESPN wasn’t comfortable running events in Orlando with the guidelines some conferences have in place isn’t a ringing endorsement, given ESPN has plenty of financial incentive to run these tipoff tournaments and pit the best teams against each other. But they also recognized the liability in running events without following CDC protocols, particularly with amateur athletes, and decided to pass, and now we’ll see what schools come up with for their own season-opening games and events.

Per Davis, ESPN does still hope to put on the Champions Classic and Jimmy V Classic at other locations, but those discussions are ongoing. Michigan State, Kansas, Gonzaga, Duke, Kentucky, Baylor, Rutgers, and Tennessee are the teams still potentially playing in those two events, but other major programs like Texas Tech and Virginia are now among those in need of a new plan to open their season.

Jon Rothstein has indicated Indianapolis may serve as the new host site for those two tournaments.

Sometimes the best new R&B can be hard to find, but there are plenty of great rhythm and blues tunes to get into if you have the time to sift through the hundreds of newly released songs every week. So that R&B heads can focus on listening to what they really love in its true form, we’ll be offering a digest of the best new R&B jams that fans of the genre should hear every Friday.

Ty Dolla Sign — Featuring Ty Dolla Sign

Ty Dolla Sign‘s Featuring Ty Dolla Sign is friendly reminder that the Grammy Award-winning musician is more than a featured accessory. As a talent who has given so many other artists hits and some of their best records, Featuring Ty Dolla Sign sees the industry returning the favor for even more potential hits. The 25-track project includes the previously released songs “Expensive” featuring Nicki Minaj and “By Yourself” with Jhene Aiko.

HER — “Damage”

HER took over the iconic Roxy Theater in Los Angeles for a performance of her vulnerable cut “Damage.” The song is expected to live on her yet-to-be-titled forthcoming album.

Luh Kel — L.O.V.E.

Luh Kel‘s debut L.O.V.E. (which stands for Loss Of Valuable Emotions) is here. The project features production from the legendary Scott Storch as well as guest appearances from Lil Tjay and Queen Naija. “This project is for all the teenagers and 20-somethings that are figuring out both love and loss,” Kel said in a statement. “I’m at a stage where relationships are highlighted on social media and everyday life, so this project touches on the best and worst moments that everyone can relate to.”

Ceraadi — #GRWM

Ceraadi has finally released their coming-of-age project #GRWM with the previously released bop “BFF” and new single “She Ain’t Me.” The sister duo, Siyar and Emaza, show tremendous growth on this project with the assistance of Grammy Award-winning producer Hit-Boy.

They. — The Amanda Tape

R&B duo They. unleashed their sophomore debut The Amanda Tape filled with 10 songs brimming with affectionate introspection. “Play Fight” with Tinashe and “Count Me In” are among the previously released tracks featured on the project.

Xavier Omär — If You Feel

Xavier Omär‘s If You Feel is truly an R&B delight. Sweetly packaged with 11 tracks that are purely addicting to the ear, Xavier taps in with Mareba on “Like I Feel” and Masego on “Surf” for added flavor with zero complaints.

Ne-Yo — “U 2 Love (Remix)” Feat. Queen Naija and Lil Durk

Ne-Yo is keeping things hot with the remix to his song with Jeremih, “U 2 Love” by adding rising R&B star Queen Naija and Chicago rapper Lil Durk.

Jawan x Tiffany — “Finally”

R&B upstart Jawan x Tiffany, also known individually as Jawan Harris and Tiffany Evans, newly released single “Finally” is a sultry vibe of the lovemaking variety. Produced by Crazy T, “Finally” is just the beginning for the fresh duo.

Love Mansuy — “Same Way”

Rising Toronto-based R&B singer Love Mansuy is gearing up for the release of his double-sided EP (món-swee) next month. Ahead of its release, he’s sharing with fans his new track “Same Way”

Check out this week’s R&B picks, plus more on Uproxx’s Spotify playlist below.

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

In these COVID times, you never know what’s going to happen if you work in the TV and film industry, which saw release dates and production schedules scattered to the wind when the pandemic reared its head back in the spring. So you can certainly understand Tom Holland‘s excitement as the actor landed in Atlanta late Sunday night night to officially begin filming on Spider-Man 3.

In a video shared in an Instagram Story, Holland is seen responsibly wearing a face mask, which does absolutely nothing to contain his palpable thrill at finally getting to work on the next Spider-Man sequel.

You can watch the video below, via ComicBook.

Witness even more Holland excitement (without a mask) below.

With Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark out of the picture, Holland’s Peter Parker will be getting a new mentor in the form of Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange. And it sure sounds like the good doctor’s skills will come in handy thanks to the surprise casting of Jamie Foxx, who will reprise his Electro role. Whether he’s playing the same Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 or a brand new version remains to be seen, but Foxx and Cumberbatch’s casting have only furthered rumors that Spider-Man 3 will grapple with the Multiverse and possibly even introduce the Spider-Verse to the MCU.

Holland swinging into the production of Spider-Man 3 in Atlanta also signifies another big win for Sony. Before going back to being Spidey, the actor was committed to completing his work on the film adaptation of Uncharted, which has spent at least a decade in development hell. However, it looks this latest iteration of the film is actually happening as Holland not only finished his acting duties, but also posted a photo of himself as lead character Nathan Drake to Instagram.

Spider-Man 3 hits theaters on December 17, 2021.

(Via Tom Holland on Instagram)

Lil Pump is used to causing a stir. As part of the wave of SoundCloud rappers who broke out in 2017 with catchy hits and shiny new record deals as a result, Pump got flamed a bunch online by older rap fans offended by his unusual look, sudden success, and apparent disregard for the history and traditions of the genre. However, now he’s getting excoriated for a different reason: Sharing his political opinions. True to his well-established troll-ish form, the “Gucci Gang” rapper posted a video decrying Joe Biden’s tax policy and saying, “Trump 2020, bitch.”

He also posted a photoshopped picture of “himself” shaking Trump’s hand. In truth, it was a photo of one of Trump’s patented awkward handshakes with Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with Pump’s head dropped onto the PM’s body. Given Pump’s prior propensity for kicking hornet’s nests over the past three years, it probably shouldn’t surprise anyone that he’d say and do controversial things for attention, yet here we are. People on Twitter were predictably miffed, launching several barrelfuls of digital vitriol the 20-year-old Floridian’s way — along with the usual memes, jokes, and countertrolls.

Pump joins fellow rap trolls 50 Cent and Kanye West in fielding criticism for their seeming endorsements of Trump. Of course, Kanye has been accusing of launching his whole “campaign” in order to benefit Trump’s own by splitting potential Biden votes (although truth be told, it’s just as likely to have the opposite effect, considering their overlapping “platforms”), while 50’s own joke about Biden’s tax plan drew the ire of fans and an offer from his ex Chelsea Handler to pay his taxes.

Check out Pump’s video — and fans’ incensed responses — above.

Back when Netflix renewed Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina for Part 2 in late 2018, it tacked on Parts 3 and 4 for good measure. This move appeared to suggest that the show planned to reach its conclusion with Part 4, and Netflix recently confirmed that this was the case. To that effect, the final batch of episodes will land sooner than fans likely expected with Netflix closing out the year on December 31, at which point Sabrina Spellman will make a stand amid her colliding worlds.

The above teaser not only previews the upcoming climactic conflict but does a whiplash-fast recap of the series thus far. It’s also throwing out vibes similar to Buffy the Vampire Slayer‘s final run with the gang coming together for a showdown. Viewers will recall that Father Blackwood was enormously pissed off about Sabrina and her coven (who have already dealt with a massive Pagan mess) walking away from the Church of Night. So, he threw a big, patriarchal tantrum to summon up monstrous beasts known as the Eldritch Terrors, which sure sound Lovecraftian in nature. From the synopsis:

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina re-imagines the origin and adventures of Sabrina the Teenage Witch as a dark coming-of-age story that traffics in horror, the occult and, of course, witchcraft. Over the course of Part 4’s eight episodes, The Eldritch Terrors will descend upon Greendale. The coven must fight each terrifying threat one-by-one (The Weird, The Returned, The Darkness to name a few), all leading up to… The Void, which is the End of All Things. As the witches wage war, with the help of The Fright Club, Nick begins to slowly earn his way back into Sabrina’s heart, but will it be too late?

Nick’s gonna be dramatic. And that’s his right, since he’s literally been through Hell and back for Sabrina. We’ll see exactly how dramatic he gets when Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina Part Four streams on New Year’s Eve.

There may be no basketball sneaker line that is knows what it wants better than that of Kyrie Irving. The enigmatic star of the Brooklyn Nets has had, basically, the same silhouette on his signature Nike sneaker for six consecutive models now, as his line continues to be among the most popular mid-cut designs in the NBA and for casual hoopers.

The upcoming Kyrie 7 continues that legacy that began with the 2 and has featured steady little tweaks but, effectively, brought a similar look with new tech to the court each year. The Kyrie 7 even goes so far as to have the same “chassis,” per Nike, as the Kyrie 6, they just lightened it up with a mesh-composite upper and removing some of the color-blocking tabs from the outsole to make it the lightest edition of his sneaker yet. The strap is likewise gone, replaced with two “TPU tabs” to provide stability in the forefoot, and it features a new traction pattern molded specifically for Irving.

The Kyrie 7 will release in a variety of colorways — a release date is, currently, not official — from the classic black and white to a number of much brighter sneakers. The mesh upper allows for some added creativity in layering colors and the heel tab design changes out for each colorway, allowing for more customization, storytelling opportunities, and a unique design to each colorway that will release. I think my favorite of those is this Icons of Sport colorway, with colors that draw inspiration from some of his favorite players and coaches, but on the heel is the play design from his own iconic moment: his three in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals.

The rest of the colorways that will be releasing soon after launch can be found below.

When Offset was detained after being accused of waving guns as he drove through Beverly Hill on Saturday, his wife Cardi B was justifiably terrified for him, as seen in a newly surfaced video of the incident shared by The Daily Mail. Cardi can be seen yelling at the police holding Offset, questioning why they pulled over and detained him. She was apparently so frustrated that she had to be physically restrained by her companions as she tried to defend Offset.

“Why is there a gun?” she challenged. “Why are you pointing a gun at him? No! This is crazy! My husband is not armed. My husband is not armed.” Police told Offset that they’d received reports of someone pointing a gun at a passerby from the car, pulling him over and detaining him as he streamed the incident on Instagram Live. Offset was released without charges, while Cardi B’s cousin Marcelo Almánzar was arrested for carrying a loaded firearm in public. He was released on $35,000 bail.

Cardi B and Offset recently reconciled after Cardi filed for divorce after three years of marriage.

Cardi B is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Rami Malek‘s new Bond villain, Safin, is so shrouded in mystery that fans have already started forming theories that the character is secretly a classic Bond villain in the vein of Christoph Waltz’s surprise reveal as Blofeld in Spectre. Unfortunately, we’re a ways off from learning the true nature of Malik’s character, due to the pandemic pushing No Time to Die into 2021, which will have officially delayed the film an entire year unless recent talks of a streaming release turn out to be more than just reports.

However, Malek has shed some more light on Safin in a new interview with British GQ, which should hopefully tide Bond fans over until No Time to Die‘s eventual debut. The Mr. Robot actor revealed that playing the Bond villain was psychologically tasking thanks to the character’s “clinical nature,” and his seemingly clouded motives that made Malek question the very nature of evil itself:

“I think you start asking questions about what evil is. And with this character especially I find him fascinating because he can detach from empathy in order to meticulously carry out his will and I start to wrap myself up in who that person is psychologically. He’s ruthless and that might be – I’m in danger of giving too much away here – a result of something that’s happened to him. But even acknowledging that taps into the analytical side of him as well. I think the fact that he can still find a way to appreciate his own evil is something that is quite petrifying and psychologically something that was not easy for me to tap into.”

With No Time to Die being Craig’s last time as 007, legendary Bond producers Barbara Broccoli touted Malek’s Safin as more than just a villain and someone who will push Bond farther than any adversary before. “We’ve thrown the book at [James Bond] on this one,” Broccoli told Empire last year. “He is really the supervillain. He’s the one that really gets under Bond’s skin. He’s a nasty piece of work.”

No Time to Die is set to hits theaters April 2, 2021, but don’t be surprised if that release date is shaken, or possibly stirred.

(Via British GQ)

Harry Styles’ latest album, Fine Line, opens with “Golden,” a bright tune made for a warm day. Now, nearly a year after the album dropped, the tune is Styles’ latest single, and he has shared a new video for it. In the clip, Styles runs and drives down a picturesque stretch of road and otherwise enjoys the outdoors as he sings the song.

Nearly a year ago, Styles told Apple Music’s Zane Lowe that his favorite memory of making the album was the day “Golden” was written:

“We were all sat in the kitchen at [Rick Rubin’s recording studio] Shangri-La, having dinner, and we played it on one guitar while everyone sang around the table. It just felt really good. Part of the thing with the mushrooms for me is that I never do anything when I’m working. I don’t even drink when I’m working. I don’t drink really at all. And when I was in the band, to me it felt like it was so much bigger than any of us. I felt like, I’m not going to be the one who messes it up. So I thought, now is the time in my life when you go out and experiment. You take this and you do that. Making this record just felt… joyous. I was with my friends and we were in Malibu and I felt so safe. Now’s the time to have fun — we’re 24, and I’m in music. I’m not a politician. We wrote it on day two of being at Shangri-La, and immediately, as soon as we’d done it, it was like, ‘Oh, this is track one.’ I used to drive to the studio, and it’s the perfect PCH [Pacific Coast Highway] song. It’s like driving down the coast is what the song is for. It feels so Malibu to me.”

Meanwhile, Styles recently offered an update about his future tour dates, writing on Twitter after announcing the postponement of some concerts, “I really hope to play the shows as planned for 2021 but will continue to monitor the situation over the coming weeks and months. I can’t wait to see you all on the road as soon as it’s safe to do so.”

Watch the “Golden” video above and revisit our review of Fine Line here.