B. Simone has had an up-and-down 2020, to say the least. Her year began with her introduction to the mainstream after she played DaBaby’s ride-or-die lover in his video for “Find My Way.” She then put out her first book, Baby Girl Manifest The Life You Want, which she claimed made her a millionaire. However, this past week things went left, as accusations of plagiarism turned up from all corners of social media. She was quickly written off — an action Meek Mill sees as a bit hypocritical.

“B Simone canceled because she finessed a book and made her way from the bottom lol what major companies y’all cancel for ripping our culture off?” Meek asked his followers on Twitter. “finding ways to display hate towards our own when they start doing good is showing amongst us a lot!”

When a fan responded to Meek’s tweet saying, “She finessed her ‘own’ though hella different cuz,” Meek offered a response that he hoped would help fans look at the situation differently. “N****s rap about selling drugs and a life they didn’t live is that not finessing their own tho? A Louie shirt a stack … a Chanel 5500$ I don’t even think they donate to blacks they number one in our culture … Im just getting confused what we standing for collectively.”

Meek’s initial tweet would kick off a string of others relating to canceling some individuals and groups and not others. At the end of it all, he would later admit to not knowing what B. Simone was being canceled for, but was just “tired of seeing blacks canceling blacks.”

Meek Mill is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

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Edge is half of the most hyped match on tonight’s WWE Backlash pay-per-view, his WrestleMania rematch with Randy Orton that’s been promoted as “The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever.” Now, outlets including Fightful and the Wrestling Observer are reporting that Edge suffered an injury during the filming of the match.

Edge vs. Orton is Backlash’s one pre-taped match; the rest of the show airs live on the WWE Network today. Fightful Select reports that Edge tore a tricep during that taping. So far, there’s no word on at what point in the taping the injury occurred or if it changed anything about the outcome or content of the match.

The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever is Edge’s third in WWE since he retired in 2011 due to neck issues. After an emotional return at the 2020 Royal Rumble, he began feuding with his former tag partner Randy Orton, which led to a long Last Man Standing match at WrestleMania in April. The feud continued after WWE’s biggest show of the year on Raw, with a challenge laid out for a rematch that would achieve “greatest ever” status and characters like Christian and Ric Flair weighing in on the bout.

Edge is currently signed to a multi-year deal with WWE.

Remember new movies? While the pandemic and its resulting nationwide quarantine hasn’t completely stopped the flow of films — art house titles and even a few studio blockbusters have been made available online — there aren’t as many as there once were. Most big titles, from No Time to Kill to Tenet to Wonder Woman 1984, have been delayed for a time when movie theaters will again be safe to visit. But what does that mean for next year’s Oscars?

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences is already considering that question. And reportedly they’re set to vote on two matters: delaying the ceremony and extended the eligibility window.

The big night has been scheduled for Feb. 28, 2021, but with no end to the pandemic in sight — and with a possible second wave en route, possibly in early autumn — the Academy’s governors are considering delaying it by as many as eight weeks. As for eligibility, the cut-off has long been at year’s end, but that may be extended, though it’s unclear to which date.

One issue that won’t be broached, at least not yet, is the format of the show: Will it be in-person or virtual? That matter will be tackled later, when we see where we are with the still rampaging coronavirus, but there’s a chance it will be the first Oscars held over Zoom.

Delaying the Oscars is not new. It’s happened three times: in 1938, in response to flooding in Los Angeles; in 1968, following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.; and in 1981 after the attempted assassination of then-president Ronald Reagan. The eligibility window has been extended before as well, but not since the 1934 ceremony, which covered movies released over a 17 month period, from August 1932 through December 31, 1933.

Meanwhile, another major awards show — this year’s Tony Awards — had to be rescheduled, though a new date has not been chosen.

(Via THR)

While the album in question arrived three months ago, Lil Baby finds himself atop the Billboard charts once again with My Turn. The jump can be credited to the record’s steady appearance near the top of the charts as well as the lack of high-profile albums released during the week starting on June 5, when no new albums appeared inside the top 40 chart.

My Turn sold a total of 65,000 equivalent album units, making it the least amount of units sold for a No. 1 album in 2020 and the smallest since Billie Eilish’s When We All Fall Asleep topped the charts with 62,000 during the week of June 8, 2019. The 13 weeks separating the No. 1 appearance by My Turn is the longest since Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born soundtrack back in 2018.

As for the rest of the chart, Lady Gaga’s Chromatica fell down a spot to No. 2 with a total of 64,000 equivalent album units. Also a former No. 1, Gunna’s Wunna can be found at No. 3 with 39,000 units sold. Rounding out the top 5, Future’s High Off Life comes in at No. 4 and Drake’s Dark Lane Demo Tapes at No. 5.

Looking at the rest of the top 10, DaBaby’s Blame It on Baby comes in at No. 6, Polo G’s The Goat is at No. 7, and Lil Uzi Vert’s Eternal Atake slides in at No. 9.

Lil Baby’s latest No. 1 comes just a few days after he released his single “The Bigger Picture,” which received an overwhelming amount of positive notices on social media.

[via Billboard]

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Jeopardy! has a plan for its life in syndication while no new episodes are able to get taped in Los Angeles, but the host of the long-running game show is certainly eager to return to the stage. The show is currently out of episodes to run after shutting down production amid the COVID-19 pandemic, airing its last “new” episode on Friday.

In its place will be some special episodes featuring recent greats like James Holzhauer and Emma Boettcher, some slight consolation to eager fans looking for more Alex Trebek content. But it turns out the show’s host is eager to get back to work after the pandemic and is pushing for it to be back in action as soon as possible.

According to TV Line, Trebek wants Jeopardy! to be one of the first shows to resume production once the all-clear is given from government and studio officials to start work again in the industry.

However, a Jeopardy! rep assures TVLine, “Alex is looking forward to resuming production as soon as we are able to do so. He’s told us he wants to be one of the first shows back in production.”

Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune were some of the first game shows to stop allowing a studio audience as the pandemic’s impact became more clear, and days later it officially shut down along with the rest of Hollywood shortly before St. Patrick’s Day.

Unfortunately for Trebek, COVID-19 cases in California and other parts of the country continue to rise significantly and there’s no word on when Jeopardy! can get back to filming, even without a studio audience. But as the weeks turn to months and the show’s studio sits silent, we now know there’s considerable interest from the show’s host to get back to work.

The NFL insists it plans on going about business as usual this fall when the season is scheduled to begin, despite a global pandemic and civil unrest over police brutality and systemic racism faced by the Black community. On the latter front, a number of players have spoken up and taken the league to task for how it’s responded in the past to protests and calls to action to address police violence, most notably in Colin Kaepernick continuing to be kept out of the league for his silent and peaceful protests of kneeling prior to games during the national anthem.

Kaepernick always explained what the message was behind his protests, but despite his constant explanations that he was calling for attention to be paid to how Black Americans were treated by police in this country, it became a debate about whether it was somehow disrespectful to the flag or the military. Drew Brees parroted that criticism recently and got roundly called out by teammates, others from around the league, and stars from other sports, and has since recanted and promised to listen and learn, even going so far as to explain to Donald Trump why his initial statement was wrong.

A number of the NFL’s star players called out the NFL for its initial statement and pushed the league to more fervently condemn racism and admit that peaceful protest by players, like Kaepernick’s, should be supported. Roger Goodell quickly issued a video message saying just that — albeit, without mentioning Kaepernick’s name, which should’ve happened — and a number of players have since made their plans to take up Kaepernick’s form of protest next season very clear.

Over the weekend, Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield became the latest to do so, responding to an Instagram comment asking, hopefully, that he wouldn’t kneel during the anthem, “Pull your head out. I absolutely am.”

Mayfield’s star teammate Odell Beckham Jr. has likewise made his intentions clear this season, and there is clearly a movement happening at the NFL’s star level in terms of garnering support for those with the biggest platforms to take a stand and join in on protesting police brutality and racism.

To make clear why he would be doing this, Mayfield posted a message to is Instagram story explaining that “it’s about equality” and, again, noted that it has nothing to do with the flag but about conveying the needed message on the platform provided to them to do so, citing conversations had between Kaepernick and his veteran teammate, Nate Boyer.

Baker also took responsibility for into being educated enough on the systemic issues that face Black Americans and not using his platform previously to speak out on the issue. Given how Kaepernick was treated by the NFL, seeing so many star players take up his form of protest this fall will be fascinating, but hopefully those that do will also be willing to speak out about how he’s been pushed out of the league and is deserving of a spot on a roster.

Last week, HBO Max announced they were temporarily removing one of their most famous titles, Gone with the Wind, from their new service in the wake of the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests. The removal was never supposed to be permanent, and now, less than a week later, we now have word that it will be returning at an as-yet-to-be-announced date and with a new introduction from black scholar and television host Jacqueline Stewart to provide some much needed context.

First released in 1939, Gone with the Wind has remained one of the most beloved films from Hollywood’s Golden Age, as well as one of its most contested. One reason? Its whitewashed, nostalgic portrayal of the Civil War-era American South, centered around the moneyed white owners of a plantation filled with happy slaves. (Hattie McDaniel became the first black performer to win an Oscar for her turn as house servant Mammy.)

In their statement, HBO Max called the film a “product of its time” that “depicts some of the ethnic and racial prejudices that have, unfortunately, been commonplace in American society.” At the same time, they did not wish to disappear the film, as to do so “would be the same as claiming these prejudices never existed.” Warner Bros., who owns the film and whose wares comprise a chunk of HBO Max’s content, has a history of presenting old, questionable fare, such as racist Looney Tunes cartoons, with a similar note. Meanwhile, Disney+ has no plans of releasing its own similarly racist title, 1946’s Song of the South.

(Via EW)

Moments after the police officer responsible for George Floyd’s death were arrested, with Officer Derek Chauvin receiving a second-degree murder charge, those active in the Black Lives Matter movement began to shift their attention to Breonna Taylor. The Louisville native was killed just months before her 27th birthday after police officers used a battery ram to enter her apartment with a “no-knock” warrant. Upon entering, officers fired multiple rounds, with at least eight gunshots hitting her.

Taylor’s death has become the protestor’s latest focus in making sure her and her family receive justice for her death. Now Beyonce has penned an open letter to the Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, voicing her frustration with Taylor’s unresolved death. In the letter, obtained by TMZ, the singer explains her exact frustrations with the handling of the incident.

Three months have passed — and the LMPD’s investigation have created more questions than answers. Their incident report states that Ms. Taylor suffered no injuries — yet we know she was shot at least at times. The LMPD claim they announced themselves before forcing their way into Ms. Taylor’s apartment — but her boyfriend who was with her, as well as several neighbors, all say this is untrue.

Three months have passed — and zero arrests have been made, and no officers have been fired. The LMPD’s investigation was turned over to your office, and yet all of the officers involved in the shooting remain employed by the LMPD. Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Officers Myles Cosgrove and Brett Hankison must be held accountable for their actions.

Beyonce then made three requests to the attorney general, asking for the following to be made: arrest and charge the officers involved in her death, commit to transparency during the investigation and prosecution of the officers, and investigate the LMPD for any wrongdoing in both their response to Taylor’s death and any practices resulting in the loss of “unarmed Black citizens.”

In her conclusion, Beyonce made one final plea with the attorney general.

Don’t let this case fall into the pattern of no action after a terrible tragedy. With every death of a Black person at the hands of the police, there are two real tragedies: the death itself, and the inaction and delays that follow it. This is your chance to end that pattern. Take swift and decisive action in charging the officers.

Beyonce’s full letter can be seen here.

[via TMZ]