50 Cent previously made it his mission to get Pop Smoke’s debut album finished following his death. Although his involvement in the project hasn’t officially been confirmed by Smoke’s label, Republic Records did previously confirm a summer release date for the album. A lot has changed in the world since then, though, and now, Smoke’s posthumous record has been delayed.

Universal Music Group executive Steven Victor shared the news yesterday, also revealing that “Make It Rain,” a new song with a mystery guest, will be out on Friday: “Music is the tool of revolution. We have been watching, along with the rest of the world, as long overdue change starts to take root. We have seen Pop’s music become the soundtrack of the moment, unifying the masses. Given recent events, we have decided to delay the release of his album out of respect for the movement. ‘Make It Rain’ will be released this Friday, June 12th. The album will be released on July 3rd. Please join us in celebrating Pop Smoke’s legacy.”

It hasn’t been revealed who will be featuring on “Make It Rain,” but 50 Cent has certainly tried to get a lot of today’s biggest stars involved in the album: In recent months, he has publicly asked Roddy Ricch, Drake, and others to guest on the project.

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

The election is still months away (let that sink in), but presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is already thinking about what will happen if he wins. Specifically, how he’ll kick the conspiracy theorist in office out of the White House.

On Wednesday’s The Daily Show, host Trevor Noah asked Biden what he plans to do if Donald Trump loses the election but fails to vacate 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. After saying he’s “so damn proud” of the military leaders who have recently criticized the president, Biden added, “You have so many rank and file military personnel saying, well, we’re not a military state, this is not who we are. I promise you, I’m absolutely convinced, they will escort him from the White House in a dispatch.” The former-vice president also told Noah that he’s certain “this president is going to try to steal this election… This is a guy who said that all mail-in ballots are fraudulent, voting by mail, while he sits behind the desk in the Oval Office and writes his mail-in ballot to vote in a primary.”

You think politics are ugly now? Wait until November.

During the interview, Noah pressed Biden on whether he would defund the police, days after he wrote an op-ed for USA Today calling for additional funding for police departments. “I don’t think police should be defunded, but I think the conditions should be placed upon them where departments are having to take significant reforms relating to [whether] we should set up a national use of force standard,” Biden responded.

You can watch the interview below.

After a spate of memes he posted caused Ice Cube to be accused of antisemitism by commenters on Twitter, the West Coast rapper denied the accusations, saying that “I get along with every race on the earth.” Regarding speculation that he’d been hacked as a possible reason for his posts, Cube said, “This is CUBE. My account has not been hacked. I speak for no organization. I only speak for the meek people of thee earth. We will not expect crumbles from your table. We have to power of almighty God backing us all over the earth. NO MORE TALKING. Repent.”

He then shared another series of memes of prominent Black figures from throughout history, including Martin Luther King, Jr., Muhammad Ali, Bob Marley, and Marcus Garvey, with short captions explaining some of the injustices they’d faced in their lifetimes. He also took time to respond to some other critics and defenders, including Marc Lamont Hill and Michael Rapaport, respectively.

Responding to Hill’s tweet to a question about Cube’s memes that called the use of “conspiracy theories of Jewish global domination… textbook antisemitism,” Cube shot back, “What if I was just pro-Black? This is the truth brother. I didn’t lie on anyone. I didn’t say I was anti anybody.” Meanwhile, Rapaport defended Cube, saying, “Ice Cube ain’t Anti-Semetic. He’s anti-asshole. Let the OG Disruptor Disrupt!” Cube approved: “Someone who actually knows me.”

It’s important to note that the use of antisemitic imagery is being conflated on both sides with how Ice Cube actually feels about Jewish people and unfortunately, that’s just not how any of this works. You can absolutely hurt someone without intending to — something Cube and everyone commenting should realize.

Cube may not have any ill will toward Jewish people but his sharing those memes can definitely cause harm. As Hill pointed out, those memes, regardless of the poster’s intent in sharing them, propagate very clear messages painting a group of people as secret rulers in order to stoke resentment against them — resentment that transforms, all too often, into violent action. With hate crimes on the rise in America, Jewish and Muslim people are almost just as likely to become targets as Black people — especially when they overlap.

So, yes a little more empathy should be shown on both sides. It’s possible that Cube doesn’t actually realize the meanings of the memes he’s shared because he has been told that they espouse pro-Black messages rather than antisemitic ones and never really investigated it for himself. And it’s important for Cube to realize that he should truly understand what he’s posting before he blasts it out to his 5.3 million followers on Twitter. Intentions matter, but not as much as results and in the end, we should all be working toward the same result: A world free of hate and inequality.

Check out Cube’s interactions with his critics and fans above.

The annual extravaganza known as the Eurovision Song Contest ended up in the pandemic cancellation pile this year, but luckily, Netflix is here to fill that void. So are Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams, who are starring in an absolutely bonkers looking movie, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga, for the Netflix streamer. Also on the cast list: Pierce Brosnan, who plays the “extremely handsome father” of Ferrell’s Lars, who’s one half of the Icelandic pop duo (Fire Saga) that’s completed by McAdams’ Sigrit. As this trailer reveals, they’re not exactly a hit on the local bar scene but still end up representing their country while taking a shot at bad-musical glory.

Will Ferrell in a Fabio wig: that’s an easy sell. This film’s directed by David Dobkin (Wedding Crashers) and written by Andrew Steele (SNL, The Jon Stewart Show), so viewers are in good hands. That’s especially the case when it comes to miraculously pulling off jokes where Lars and Sigrit mull over whether a bigger ding-dong and a cameltoe might win over judge’s hearts and, ultimately, make Iceland proud. Along the way, they must resist the cliché of falling into bed together like Fleetwood Mac… or Simon & Garfunkel?

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga doesn’t have a release date yet, but expect it this summer. Here’s a hair-filled poster.

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Tekashi 69 is set to return with new music this week, the Nicki Minaj reunion “Trollz.” The pair previously linked up on “Fefe,” which went multi-Platinum and reached No. 3 on the Hot 100 chart. Since the new song was announced, though, Minaj has faced backlash (and support) for decided to collaborate with the controversial rapper again. Now, Minaj has offered a response.

Taking to Twitter, Minaj wrote, “You don’t have to defend me. I’m not afraid of internet trolls, blogs, artists. I don’t jump on band wagons. Many will never know what it feels like to have a mind of their own.” The tweet has since been deleted.

Regardless of how fans feel about Minaj working with Tekashi, at least some good will come out of the collab. Minaj previously noted that a portion of proceeds from the song, including merch, will go to The Bail Project, saying, “We want to protect and support the thousands of brave people working on the front lines of social justice, using their voices to demand AN END to the targeting and killing of Black Americans by the police.”

Tekashi has been charitable in recent days, but it hasn’t always gone well: He tried donating to a non-profit, but they wouldn’t accept his money.

Los Angeles Lakers great Kobe Bryant, who tragically died in January in a helicopter crash, won many awards in his lifetime: five NBA Finals trophies, an MVP, two Olympic gold medals, and an Academy Award for Dear Basketball. And now he’s being honored with a posthumous Emmy award. Bryant will receive the Los Angeles Area Emmy Governors Award at the Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards for his “philanthropy, community building, and inspiration that extended beyond the basketball court”:

According to the org, the award “is presented to an individual, company or organization that has made an outstanding, innovative and visionary achievement in the arts, sciences or management of television as well as a substantial contribution to the greater Los Angeles area.” Spectrum SportsNet, which holds the TV rights to the Los Angeles Lakers, nominated Bryant for the award.

According to Variety, Bryant — who, with this Emmy, is halfway to an EGOT, but I think we can all agree being an 18-time All-Star is way more impressive than winning a single Grammy — was selected at this year’s recipient for championing “a number of worthy causes and critical issues, becoming an ambassador for women’s basketball, a mentor and youth advocate, and raised awareness of homelessness in Los Angeles.”

The 72nd Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards air on July 18 (watch here).

(Via Variety)

Sometimes you know you’re watching something special as it’s happening.

It happened with the “Dinner Party” episode of The Office, and the “Remedial Chaos Theory” episode of Community, and, mostly recently, the “On the Run” episode of FX’s vampire comedy What We Do in the Shadows, henceforth known as the Jackie Daytona episode. Written by Stefani Robinson (who’s also credited with the Atlanta episodes “Juneteenth” and “Woods” — someone give her a ton of money to make whatever she wants NOW), the Jackie Daytona episode was an instantly great episode of television, with an Emmy-worthy performance from Matt Berry, and it also solidified something I was feeling around the time the Nadja doll was introduced: What We Do in the Shadows might be the funniest show on television. I’m tempted to say it “is” the funniest show, full stop, but there’s strong competition out there. Let’s go through some of the competitors.

Shows That Aren’t Technically On TV; They’re On A Streaming Service

This leaves out I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, Russian Doll, Solar Opposites, Never Have I Ever, Ramy, Big Mouth, and Pen15. I love them all, but for the purposes of this important thought exercise, only non-streaming shows are eligible.

Barry

Extremely funny! But also extremely dark and depressing.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

It’s Always Sunny is still wildly funny after 14 seasons and has shown an admirable willingness to adapt to a different era, but I’m not sure you could make the case that it’s at its peak. “The Gang Texts” was great, but was it better than season four’s “The Nightman Cometh”? Shadows is either at its peak, or it’s going to continue to get better.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Not sure now’s the time to make the case for B99 being the “best” anything.

Bob’s Burgers

The most consistent show on TV, and I watch it the way Netflix subscribers do The Office, but it doesn’t provide the same level of belly-laughs as Shadows.

Rick and Morty

The funniest animated show, I’d argue, but not the funniest show overall.

The Other Two and Los Espookys

Too good to be one-season wonders, but I’d like to see more before declaring them the best. Although, I will say, both shows had better debut seasons than Shadows…

Insecure

A little too real for anyone in their 30s (me).

Documentary Now!

Inconsistent. Some episodes are among the funniest things I’ve ever seen on TV (“Original Cast Album: Co-Op”), others are tough to get through (“Batsh*t Valley”).

Joe Pera Talks With You

I love Joe Pera Talks With You, but until Adult Swim announces whether it’s coming back for a third season, it’s not qualified. I’m never not thinking of the bean arch, though.

The Righteous Gemstones and Succession

I originally considered excluding these shows, as they’re both an hour long and, rightly or wrongly, I rarely consider anything over 30 minutes to be a “comedy.” But both are uproariously funny, and the stiffest competition to What We Do in the Shadows. That said, I’m crossing The Righteous Gemstones off the list for the same reason as The Other Two and Los Espookys above: it’s only been on for one season. There’ll be plenty of misbehavin’ to come, though. Maybe after season two! So it’s down to What We Do in the Shadows vs. Succession (at least until someone yells at me for forgetting Last Man Standing or a 4 a.m. Adult Swim special with 47 views on YouTube, or something).

Now, I love Succession and miss it dearly and often think about “my boy Squiggle” and “slime puppy” and the various ways Brian Cox says “f*ck off,” all of them perfect… but I’m not always in the mood to watch a show about a bunch of toxic billionaires. It can be A Lot and, especially lately, I’m not in the mood to watch A Lot. That’s one of the reasons why I look forward to What We Do in the Shadows every week. It’s a silly show about a group of vampires living together in Staten Island; it’s the epitome of “hilarity ensues.”

As my colleague Brian Grubb accurately put it, “It is so good and so, so funny. Legitimate belly laughs at least once an episode, and more than that, by a lot, in the last handful.” I’m still laughing thinking about Colin Robinson trying to get people to fall for an “updog” joke, and Colin Robinson quoting “Dilly Dilly” two years after everyone else stopped using it, and Colin Robinson saying, “Door on the floor, we ain’t here no more.” I’d call Colin Robinson the MVP of season two, but, really, it’s five-way tie between Robinson (Mark Proksch), Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), Nadja (Natasia Demetriou), Nandor (Kayvan Novak), and Laszlo (Matt “BAT” Berry). Six-way, if you include the Nadja doll.

“But,” you’re probably not wondering, “why would you ding Barry for being too dark when Shadows has a casualty count in the hundreds?” It’s the same reason Looney Tunes is hilarious: it’s cartoonish violence, and cartoonish violence is very funny. No one is running into a painted hole in the wall, but there are teen girl vampires murdering Sweet Birthday Baby from Russian Doll and sperm-extracting witches and a literal troll and Guillermo (last name… Buillermo?) channeling his inner Van Helsing. Gizmo, as Nadja calls him, might not be the funniest character on Shadows, but he’s the emotional core, the one who keeps the plot from drifting too far into empty slapstick. He’s increasingly turned to the dark side (shout out to Mark Hamill), while the vampires have gotten wackier. The “mailer-daemon” stuff, for instance, only works because it’s Guillermo who usually takes care of the chores, and without him, the vampires, Nandor especially, are clueless. It’s a beautiful balance that keeps Shadows from being empty calories.

Also, and I cannot stress this enough, Jackie Daytona.

Let’s raise our glass of human alcohol beer served by a regular human bartender and toast to What We Do in the Shadows, the funniest show on TV.

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Coachella was one of the first major music festivals to announce a delay as the coronavirus pandemic started to sweep the globe. Now, festivals are realizing that pushing things back by a few months isn’t a big enough step: After months of rumors, Coachella has officially been canceled for 2020 (as has its country music counterpart, Stagecoach).

Festival organizers Goldenvoice have yet to share a public announcement about the cancelation, but this news comes via Riverside County public health officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser, who announced yesterday that Coachella and Stagecoach will not be able to take place on their delayed fall dates. He said (via the Los Angeles Times):

“I am concerned as indications grow that COVID-19 could worsen in the fall. In addition, events like Coachella and Stagecoach would fall under Governor Newsom’s Stage 4, which he has previously stated would require treatments or a vaccine to enter. Given the projected circumstances and potential, I would not be comfortable moving forward. These decisions are not taken lightly with the knowledge that many people will be impacted. My first priority is the health of the community.”

Recent reports indicated that the next edition of Coachella could take place next spring in a reduced capacity, or could happen next fall.