Entertainment News
Perspective: Kanye West’s Presidential Run Would Be as a Long-Shot Write-In Candidate
If Kanye West is truly serious about running for president in 2020, he’ll likely have to do so as a write-in candidate. As Kanye will be neither the nominee of the Democrat or Republican party, he’d instead run as an independent or third party candidate. And as an independent or third party candidate, Kanye would not be guaranteed a spot on every state’s ballot: Each state has is own individual rules for getting on its ballot, including requiring a certain number of signatures. Obtaining such signatures in the middle of a pandemic would be a difficult enough proportion, but he would also have to do so in an extremely short timeframe. Each state has a deadline for filing to run for president, and several of those deadlines have already passed. It’s too late to get on the ballot in Indiana, ...
Study: Horror Fans Have Shown “Greater Resilience During the Pandemic”
The best way to prepare for a pandemic is to go through a different pandemic, and it doesn’t hurt to participate in some alien invasions or the odd zombie apocalypse. According to a new study, horror fans and “morbidly curious” people have shown “greater resilience during the pandemic.” The research into psychological coping was conducted by scientists at the University of Chicago, Penn State, and Denmark’s Aarhus University. It hasn’t yet been peer reviewed, but a preprint has been giving the internet goosebumps. By looking at 310 individuals, researchers came to the conclusion that “exposure to frightening fictions allow audiences to practice effective coping strategies that can be beneficial in real-world situations.” They wrote, “We found that fans of horror films exhibited greater res...
Axl Rose Calls on Surgeon General to Resign: “America Deserves Better”
Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose has called on US Surgeon General Jerome Adams to resign following a recent television appearance in which Adams seemingly prioritized Donald Trump’s personal approval over the personal safety of millions of Americans. When asked on The Today Show whether he’d advise Americans to go to a large gathering, such as Donald Trump’s various events during the Fourth of July weekend, Adams evaded answering the question directly. “It’s not a yes or no,” Adams said. “Every single person has to make up their own mind. There are going to be people going to beaches, going to barbecues, going to different environments. And they have to look at their individual risk.” (For context, Trump’s Fourth of July event at Mount Rushmore drew a crowd of several thousand, with few peo...
Bassnectar “Stepping Back” From Music Following Allegations of Sexual Misconduct
The prominent electronic dance DJ and producer Bassnectar says he is “stepping back” from music following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, grooming, and ephebophilia. A recently launched Instagram page called @evidenceagainstbassnectar has collected a number of disturbing allegations involving Bassnectar (whose real name is Lorin Ashton). Many of the alleged incidents involved young women under the age of 18. The Instagram page includes several detailed accounts written by his alleged victims in addition to archived text correspondences and audio recordings of their interactions with him. In one of the audio clips, Bassnectar can be heard admitting to raping a 17-year-old girl. In another clip, he attempts to gaslight his alleged victim by asking her if she wanted to see him be a...
Tom Cruise Allowed to Skip 14-Day Quarantine in the UK So He Can Resume Filming Mission: Impossible 7
Even in the middle of a pandemic, being a celebrity has its privileges. According to Variety, Tom Cruise is being allowed to bypass a 14-day travel quarantine in the UK so that he can resume production on Mission: Impossible 7. UK culture secretary Oliver Dowden said Cruise would be among a small group of cast and crew members exempt from quarantine “as part of of our continued commitment to getting cameras rolling safely again.” “The world’s biggest blockbusters and high-end TV shows are made in Britain. Our creativity, expertise and highly successful tax reliefs for our screen industries means that we are an in demand location that in turn delivers a great return for our economy,” Dowden explained. “We want the industry to bounce back and exempting small numbers of essential cast an...
300 Teens Exposed to Coronavirus During Beer Pong Tournament
Hundreds of teenagers were exposed to coronavirus during a beer pong tournament in Texas last weekend. The Star-Telegram reports that about 300 high school students participated in a “pong fest” tournament near Lakeway, Texas on Saturday, June 27th. Several of those who attended the event have already tested positive for coronavirus, while others are still awaiting to hear back on their test results. Regardless of the final number of positive tests, the sheer scale of the exposure is putting a strain on the local health system. “The city is trying to get a handle on who attended, and the numbers are so big, contact tracing everyone is not possible,” Lakeway Mayor Sandy Cox explained. “Hopefully we can contain this. The worst thing that can happen is that we don’t contain this.” Texas has e...
First Socially Distanced Music Venue in Open in the UK This Summer
Music fans in the UK may get to experience live music sooner than some health experts have predicted. The country’s first socially distanced music venue, the Virgin Money Unity Arena, will allegedly open in Newcastle this summer, reports NME. The venue was created in a partnership between the teams behind This Is Tomorrow Festival, SSD Concerts, and Virgin Money. Using a series of mapped out “viewing areas” for individuals and small groups akin to raised platforms — each viewing area is at least two meters away from the other viewing areas surrounding it, generously abiding by social distancing measures — they were able to transform the outdoor space at Newcastle Racecourse into a music festival-style layout. Food and drinks can also be pre-ordered using a one-way system. Toilet facil...
Dreamers on Being Influenced by Nirvana and Sci-Fi
Kyle Meredith With… Dreamers Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public Dreamers frontman Nick Wold calls into Kyle Meredith With… to talk about the band’s latest single “Heatseeker” and the alternate version that features their friend Grandson. In fact, it’s not the first time the two have collaborated, having teamed up earlier this year for Grandson’s “Whole Lotta”, which inspired Wold to take a more philosophical and political turn within his own lyrics. Wold discusses what this new phase for the band means for his upcoming songs, taking influence from Nirvana and Royal Blood to go heavier, his love of sci-fi, and learning to play piano during this downtime. Kyle Meredith With… is an interview...
Jason Isbell Unveils “Maybe It’s Time” Demo from A Star is Born: Stream
Jason Isbell contributed one perfect song to the 2018 A Star is Born soundtrack: “Maybe It’s Time”, sung by Bradley Cooper. Now, Isbell has shared his original demo of “Maybe It’s Time”, as well as the unreleased track “Alabama Sky”. Both songs are available on Bandcamp as part of the last fee-free Bandcamp Day. Bradley Cooper’s performance as alcoholic rock star Jackson Maine earned him an Oscar nomination. “Maybe It’s Time” was the character’s signature song, and Cooper’s singing was surprisingly good. But Isbell remains the better vocalist. The lyrics come out crisper, easier to hear, yet Isbell’s tone sounds much more conversational. Compared to the film, the demo is driven by a louder, brighter acoustic guitar, and Isbell’s delivery is so subtly emotional, it makes a well-kn...
Dave Grohl Says He Worried About Getting Fired from Nirvana
Dave Grohl’s drumming in Nirvana is the stuff of legend, but at one point he was worried about getting fired from the band. In a new interview, Grohl admits he was “nervous” that he “was not good enough” to keep his job in the iconic grunge act. “I joined Nirvana, I was their fifth drummer, right?” Grohl reflected in a new interview with Matt Wilkinson of Apple Music. “They’d had a team of drummers before me and some of them were more, I don’t know, more in the band than others. So when I joined the band, I didn’t know Krist and Kurt at all. And when we first met and started playing, it was clear that when we got together to play that it worked really well, and we sounded what most people know now to sound like Nirvana. We sounded like that.” He continued, “But you just meet these people a...
Tekashi 6ix9ine Premieres New Single “Yaya”: Stream
Tekashi 6ix9ine is back with another new single. “Yaya” is the rapper’s third release since getting out of prison, following “Gooba” and “Trollz”. The latter track, featuring Nicki Minaj, recently went No. 1 on the Billboard 100. Despite the success of “Trollz”, 6ix9ine says “Yaya” is the best one I did [sic] so far.” The track hears him rapping and singing entirely in Spanish, suggesting that it’s the first preview of a Spanish-language album currently in the works. Watch the explicit video below. As mentioned, “Yaya” marks his third comeback single since being released early from prison due to the coronavirus. The rapper had originally been sentenced to 24 months behind bars after pleading guilty to racketeering, firearm possession, and drug trafficking charges. ...
HBO Max’s An American Pickle Trailer Gives Us Two Seth Rogens In One Movie: Watch
There’s always room for Seth Rogen — even two of them. Such is the case for An American Pickle, the forthcoming comedy set to premiere on HBO Max on August 6th. Today, the network the film’s first trailer, which you can watch below. Based on Simon Rich’s 2013 New Yorker short story, An American Pickle spins a tall-tale about a struggling immigrant named Herschel Greenbaum (Rogen), who falls into a vat of pickles in 1920 Brooklyn, only to wake up brined and young 100 years later. It gets better: Greenbaum has a grandson named Ben Greenbaum (also played by Rogen), who works as a mild-mannered coder, which obviously doesn’t make a lick of sense to the confused time traveler. Naturally, hi-jinx will ensue. Editors’ Picks Rich wrote the screenplay and cinematographer-turned-filmmaker Bran...
