FX’s historical drama Snowfall has been widely praised for its authenticity in portraying the events that led up to Los Angeles’ late-80s/early-90s crack cocaine epidemic and was to begin airing its fourth season later this year. However, due to the outbreak of COVID-19, production was suspended, forcing FX to push the show’s next season to 2021. For most of us, this represents a loss in viewing options come Fall TV season. However, for one native of Los Angeles County, it presents an opportunity.

Like the million or so average viewers of the program, it turns out Vince Staples is an avid fan who admires the show’s realism in presenting the crack era through its intersecting narratives of young drug dealers and CIA operatives. But it seems Vince sees something the show is missing: Himself. The wisecracking Long Beach rapper tweeted out a request to be included in the next season of the show and he even threw in a sweetener to highlight his fit for the role. “Man can I be a extra in Snowfall?” he wrote. “Stop playin I’ll bring my own blower & all that.”

The show’s casting director wouldn’t go amiss taking a look at Vince’s growing resume. After appearing in the 2015 coming-of-age comedy Dope, Vince has since been cast in leading roles on Adult Swim’s Lazor Wulf, in the animated action movie MFKZ, and in the upcoming indie road trip move, Punk. He also had a hilarious cameo in Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” video and a pair of episodes of his endlessly entertaining own Vince Staples Show, fighting off assailants and dodging heated exes.

So, Snowfall crew, please take this man up on his request. You’ve got little to lose and a whole lot to gain. Plus, he’ll even bring his own blower, saving the props department some money too.

Hulu and NEON landed the rights to the Andy Samberg- and Cristin Milioti-starring comedy Palm Springs for $17,500,000.69, a Sundance Film Festival record, beating the previous title-holder by 69 cents. Nice. Also nice: the reviews for the movie. Our own Mike Ryan called it “absolutely fantastic,” while Roger Ebert‘s Brian Tallerico added, “A wildly entertaining entry in a genre that is on life support lately, the romantic comedy.”

Directed by Max Barbakow and produced by the Lonely Island, Palm Springs finds Nyles and Sarah, played by the utterly charming Brooklyn Nine-Nine and How I Met Your Mother stars, stuck in a loop on their friends’ wedding day. It’s the “spiritual cousin” of Groundhog Day mixed with the irreverent, silly humor of Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, and unlike most high-concept comedies, it actually looks funny.

Here’s the official plot synopsis.

When carefree Nyles (Andy Samberg) and reluctant maid of honor Sarah (Cristin Milioti) have a chance encounter at a Palm Springs wedding, things get complicated when they find themselves unable to escape the venue, themselves, or each other.

Palm Springs, which also stars J.K. Simmons, Meredith Hagner, Camila Mendes, Tyler Hoechlin, and Peter Gallagher, premieres on Hulu and in select drive-ins on July 10.

View Entire Post ›

Making the planet just a little cleaner one biodegradable dog poop bag at a time. 🌎

View Entire Post ›

You know you’ve been doing a lot of online shopping…

View Entire Post ›

We’re asking the hard questions, and you can only choose ONE answer for each.

View Entire Post ›

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 new album from Jehnny Beth, another sampling of a forthcoming project from R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe, and a new track from Fontaines DC. Check out the rest of the best new indie music below.

Jehnny Beth — To Love Is To Live

The debut solo album from Savages’ Jehnny Beth was inspired by David Bowie’s Blackstar, with Beth telling the New York Times that she worked on the project “as if I was going to die.” Brooding and intense, To Live Is To Love is an earnest reconciliation with life and the constant advancement toward death, a formidable solo entry for Beth and some of the best new indie music this week.

Coriky — Coriky

Understated but powerful, Coriky is Ian Mackaye’s new band, featuring fellow Fugazi member Joe Lally on bass and The Warmers’ Amy Farina on drums. With all three members singing, the band’s self-titled debut sounds like an amalgam of the best of DC punk with modern alternative rock vibes.

Michael Stipe + Big Red Machine — “No Time For Love Like Now”

Two months after its live debut on The Late Show, Aaron Dessner and Justin Vernon’s Big Red Machine have shared the studio version of their collaboration with R.E.M. leader Michael Stipe. It’s what what Derrick Rossignol calls for Uproxx a “contemplative track,” and comes alongside a video of Stipe and Dessner playing the song in their respective homes.

Fontaines DC — “I Don’t Belong”

The opening track of Fontaines DC’s forthcoming sophomore album A Hero’s Death is a droning ode to independence. According to Carolyn Droke for Uproxx, it “hones the band’s sound while staying true to their post-punk roots with droning guitars and cerebral lyrics.”

Lionel Boy — “Lately”

With his debut EP Who Is Dovey just around the corner, Lionel Boy has been steadily rolling out new music to continue building momentum. “Lately” is a groovy track, featuring saxophone lines and Lionel Boy’s reverb-soaked vocals over-saturated percussion.

Shamir — “On My Own”

Shamir just released an album earlier this year, but he isn’t done just yet, with another as-yet-untitled LP in the works for later this summer. “On My Own” is the first taste of that forthcoming project, what Carolyn Droke calls for Uproxx a “fuzzy, grunge-inspired guitar riff that’s juxtaposed by Shamir’s lilting vocals.”

Bully — “Where To Start”

After Bully vocalist Alicia Bognanno underwent some massive life changes during while writing, the band’s new album Sugaregg was born out of the flames. You can hear the intensity in the album’s “noisy and earnest” lead single, according to Carolyn Droke for Uproxx.

Woodkid — “Pale Yellow”

Seven years after releasing his debut album, Woodkid is finally prepping its follow up. “Pale Yellow” is the latest sampling from the new effort, evoking James Blake’s crooning over orchestral instrumentation before intricate industrial beats enter the picture. It’s a promising taste of what’s to come from the long-awaited new album.

De’Wayne — “National Anthem”

Mixing energetic alternative rock and hip-hop, De’Wayne reflects his American experience in the new track “National Anthem.” “I had planned on releasing this at a future date,” he said in a statement, “but I’m taking the most recent (and recurring) event as a sign that the world needs this right f*cking now.” It’s De’Wayne’s first standalone single with Hopeless Records, leaving us excited for what’s to come from the LA-based artist.

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

The trailer for Eric Andre’s upcoming Netflix special Legalize Everything begins with the comedian asking an audience, “Do you remember the show Cops? Is it just me or is reggae the most inappropriate music they could have picked? You can’t slap reggae over police brutality footage and call it a day.” Paramount Network canceled Cops after 32 seasons last week, but while the joke may seem timely, it’s actually anything but.

“I’ve been complaining about police brutality and racism my whole life. So it’s not new to me. Now people have a front row seat to it,” Andre recently told The Last Laugh podcast. The Eric Andre Show host also discussed the joke that some “middle-aged white people” at Netflix wanted him to remove from the special due to the current climate.

It’s from the bit the special opens with, where Andre is seen handing out to drugs to strangers while dressed as a police officer. “I’m like, no, guys!” he said. “This is the best time to do these jokes. This is what we need! We need to point out the absurdity of the police department and what a fucking hypocrisy and a disgrace it is. We need to point out police brutality. I am blessed that my stand-up special is coming out in this time.”

Legalize Everything is available to stream on Netflix on June 23.

As the NBA and NBPA work towards a full agreement on a return to play plan for the 22-team, 8-game race to the playoffs in Orlando, there is a growing number of players voicing their concerns and questions about the Disney bubble.

Kyrie Irving, Avery Bradley, and others from the NBA, WNBA, and beyond have formed a coalition to present those concerns. Some of them have concerns about basketball distracting from the Black Lives Matter movement and player activism, while others are worried about the safety of the bubble and whether the restart is worth it. There are, of course, significant financial ramifications for the league and players should they scrap restart plans, and it’s something all parties understand. However, voicing concerns of those in the union is the job of a VP like Kyrie, and if nothing else he wants to provide a platform for those to be raised and to ensure they are discussed and, if possible, settled with the league before play resumes.

John Wall, like Kyrie, will not be playing in the bubble no matter what as he continues to work his way back from an Achilles injury, but the Wizards’ All-Star point guard gave public backing to Irving and other players raising concerns noting on ‘The Tuff Juice Podcast” with Caron Butler that if he were healthy he wouldn’t want to play, saying he’s not convinced the bubble is safe (transcription via NBC Sports Washington).

“For me, if I was playing, I wouldn’t want to go to it, to be honest. I just don’t feel like it’s safe. I just don’t feel like it is. I understand why they want to do it and what they’re trying to get to, but I wouldn’t want to,” Wall said.

Wall also highlighted that he believes Kyrie has “a point” about not wanting to detract from the Black Lives Matter movement, and that he is more than understanding of players that take that stance.

“Kyrie has his things where he be in his own world… ‘The Earth is flat,’” he said. “But to be honest, I think he has a point. A lot of people feel that way. I think that’s why they tried to get on that call to see how many people really want to go play and how many people don’t want to play. Because with all this ‘Black Lives Matter’ going on and protesting and trying to get justice and all that; a lot of people feel like it’s not safe to go there. That’s what he stands on.”

There will of course be those that point out that both Irving and Wall have the benefit of being able to say they don’t want to go when they wouldn’t anyway due to health, but that two of the league’s All-Star caliber players are noting these questions they have is important. It’s important in making players of smaller stature in the league feel like they can have concerns as well, while also pushing these questions into the mind of the public to encourage discussion between the union and league to try and alleviate at least some of these worries with action.

Fiona Apple has been infamously resistant to licensing her music for use in TV and film. But the singer has found a way to allow producers to use her songs while also supporting a good cause. The singer has committed to donating song royalties from two Fetch The Bolt Cutters tracks to benefit charity.

In an announcement on social media, Apple said that for two years royalties earned from her song “Shameika” will go the Harlem Children’s Zone while those from “Heavy Balloon” will benefit the non-profit Seeding Sovereignty. The singer said that if the tracks aren’t picked up by the film industry, she will still donate $50,000 to each organization independently. “I will be able to give a lot more, if I can earn some of that Hollywood cash, so here’s hoping, here’s trying, and that’s that, I guess!” she wrote.

This isn’t the first time Apple has donated song royalties to charity. Just last year, the singer announced she would be sending royalties from her 1996 track “Criminal” to the While They Wait fund, an organization that provides refugees with assistance, legal services, and immigration fees. Apple said “Criminal” is her most requested song for TV and movies and that she hopes her donations would provide “representation and guidance.”

See Apple’s charitable commitment announcement above.

Fetch The Bolt Cutters is out now via Epic. Get it here.