Category: Worldwide

The AFC team with the best FanDuel odds to win the 2024 Super Bowl is the Kansas City Chiefs (although maybe not after last night), while the Philadelphia Eagles are the favorites in the NFC. Drew Carey did not pick either team to win the Super Bowl. He chose the team with the worst odds, and another that’s close to the bottom.

To be fair, Carey didn’t know which teams he was backing when he punched holes into the Punch-A-Bunch predictor for a segment on The Price is Right. For the AFC, he involuntarily picked the Houston Texans, who are tied with the Arizona Cardinals with the worst odds to win the Super Bowl (if you wager $250 and they win, you get $45,000). In the NFC, Carey is unfortunately aligned with the Washington Commanders. “Oh man… You know what? Don’t risk your money,” he said while showing the card to the studio audience.

Carey added, “It’s also nice to know who not to bet on.”

The Price is Right host must be disappointed that he didn’t pick the Cleveland (which famously rocks) Browns — but glad he didn’t choose the Baltimore Ravens. “I will always hate the Ravens,” he once said (the old Browns were moved from Cleveland by evil Art Modell to become the Ravens before the new Browns returned to Ohio). “Always. Of course, we hate Pittsburgh in Cleveland, but that’s healthy. Believe it or not, I think we hate the Ravens more.”

For what it’s worth, the Browns have the 13th best Super Bowl odds.

It’s Barbie’s world if you’re still in doubt. As the 2023 VMAs return to Newark, New Jersey’s Prudential Center, on September 12, rapper Nicki Minaj will be on double duty for the evening. In August, organizers announced Lil Wayne, Demi Lovato, Stray Kids, Karol G, and more would grace the ceremony’s stage for the evening. However, there was one substantial pink omission: the head Barb herself. Today (September 8), that has changed.

On X (formerly Twitter), the event organizers revealed that the “Last Time I Saw You” rapper would not only be performing for the crowd mixed with music professionals and fans, but in addition to that, she would serve as the evening’s host.

“BAAAAAARBZ @NICKIMINAJ IS PERFORMING AT THE 2023 #VMAs, AND she’s our emcee for the night!! Watch her LIVE ~ TUESDAY at 8p on @MTV [pink bow emoji],” read the post.

Minaj is up for several awards at the 2023 VMAs, including Video Of The Year (“Super Freaky Girl”), Artist Of The Year, Best Hip-Hop (“Super Freaky Girl”), Best R&B (Yung Bleu & Nicki Minaj – “Love In The Way”), and Best Visual Effects (“Super Freaky Girl” – Visual Effects by Max Colt and Sergio Mashevskyi).

Last year, Minaj also performed a mashup of her biggest hits. She was also bestowed the coveted Vanguard Award, the highest honor from the event.

The 2023 MTV VMAs will take place on Tuesday, September 12, 2023, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on MTV. To watch, tune in via MTV.com live stream or on Paramount+. Find more information here.

This week, Danny Masterson’s decades-long prison sentence ended a long legal saga (and hopefully also ended a pattern of harassment by Scientology goons) for his rape victims. The That ’70s Show star reportedly blew a kiss to wife Bijou Phillips in the courtroom and has vowed to appeal the sentence. In the immediate aftermath of the sentencing announcement, however, a nearly decades-old Conan O’Brien clip has been making the rounds because it hits rather uncomfortably now.

It’s worth noting again that the two forcible rape convictions involve 2003 events at Masterson’s Hollywood Hills home. And in 2004, the That ’70s Show star visited O’Brien, where the subject of accents came up. Even after transplanting to California, Masterson found the pronunciation of certain words would stick around from his Long Island days. That led to a story about fellow Scientologist Bodhi Elfman giving Masterson hell, as he told Conan: “He always teases me and he says, ‘Hi, my name is Danny Masterson, would you like to touch my balls.’”

In this clip highlighted on Twitter by the WuTangKids account, Conan inquired about why on earth Masterson would ask for that. Masterson had a wiseass comeback: “I mean, you got ’em, you know what I mean? Everybody should grab.” And Conan (in classic Conan comeback fashion) quipped, “I’ve heard about you… you’ll be caught soon, I know you will.” Masterson agreed, although no one had any idea at that point how accurate that would turn out to be. Looking back, this is a real head shaker of a conversation.

In May, Masterson was found guilty of two of three counts of rape by force or fear. 20 years after those crimes, he’s 47 years old, and he most likely won’t surface from prison until age 77. During the sentencing hearing, the judge told the actor, “You are not the victim here. Your actions 20 years ago took away another person’s voice and choice. Your actions 20 years ago were criminal.” Prior to that moment, one of Masterson’s victims called out his former DJ moniker, DJ Donkey Punch (yes, that would refer to the dangerously violent sexual act).

The Conan clip isn’t the only one that looks especially sketchy these days. Here’s a clip from a James Corden interview where Masterson declares, “I probably have more photos of Commando Kutcher here naked in the club than probably anybody.” It was awkward then, and it’s worse now.

Ron DeSantis is reportedly grousing behind the scenes about his embarrassing GOP debate strategy being leaked just days before the Fox News event. Adding insult to injury, the leak came from the Florida governor’s super PAC, Never Back Down, and he’s not thrilled with the lead strategist over there.

According to the Washington Post, DeSantis’ campaign is once-again awash in internal drama as the governor has reportedly soured on Never Back Down and has been privately complaining about the group’s performance. DeSantis entered the Republican primary as the biggest threat to Donald Trump and the most likely to secure the nomination. He’s now flailing in the polls and may not make it past Iowa or New Hampshire:

DeSantis has expressed regrets over Jeff Roe’s hiring as a lead strategist at the super PAC Never Back Down, an outside group that has assumed many responsibilities in the race traditionally handled by campaigns, two of the people said. One, a DeSantis donor, heard the comments directly from the governor, this person said.

DeSantis has also voiced anger over a pre-debate strategy memo from Never Back Down, which was publicly posted last month on the website of Roe’s firm, Axiom, these people said. One of them, the donor, said the governor was “apoplectic.”

In DeSantis’ defense, the leaked memo was pretty humiliating thanks to its blatant attempt to have the governor try to drive in Trump’s lane by doling out weak nicknames to his opponents. One of those names was “Fake Vivek” or “Vivek the Fake,” which prompted Vivek Ramaswamy to slap DeSantis with a much more brutal and accurate nickname of his own: “Robot Ron.”

(Via Washington Post)

On Thursday (September 7), Zach Bryan‘s mugshot was floating around the internet. The rising country star had been arrested in Oklahoma on an obstruction of investigation charge. He immediately addressed it online, explaining he “had an incident with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.”

Since then, he’s shared a video further explaining the situation.

“I was an idiot today, and my decisions did not reflect who I was as a person. I just want to make that clear. I should’ve been smarter about it,” he began. Then he said that a few days ago he was driving through a small Oklahoma town when he was pulled over for going a few miles over the speed limit. The cop asked for his license, registration, and address.

“I told him, ‘Hey man, I don’t really feel comfortable giving you my address. I’m a musician, I’m just not comfortable with it,’” he said.

“So he says, ‘If you don’t give me your address, I’m gonna have to take you to jail,’” he continued.

Bryan still refused and he handcuffed him. They talked, Bryan gave him his address, and the cop let him go. Then, fast-forward to Thursday, he was driving to Boston when his security guard following him was pulled over. When Bryan got out of his vehicle to see what was going on, a cop instructed him to get back in his car or he would take him to jail.

“I get too lippy with him, he brings me over to his car, and I just didn’t help my situation at all,” he said. “I felt like a child. It was ridiculous, it was immature, and I just pray everyone knows that I don’t think I’m above the law. I was just being disrespectful and I shouldn’t have been. It was my mistake.”

When they let him back out, the cop was talking to him and telling him not to interrupt him. Bryan did interrupt him and so they took him to jail, where he was for a few hours. “I was just an idiot,” he concluded, “I’ll take the fall for it.”

Zach Bryan is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lil Baby’s It’s Only Us Tour has faced several hiccups along the way. Just weeks before the string of shows was set to kick off, the Grammy Award-nominated rapper canceled a number of dates without offering ticketholders any explanation. Days after, he lost his biggest opening act, The Kid Laroi. Since then, it seemed as if everything had been smooth sailing until yesterday (September 7).

Unfortunately, during Lil Baby’s performance at Memphis, Tennesse’s FedEx Forum, one person was shot, according to ABC News. The outlet revealed that the victim was a male concertgoer. After being rushed to Regional One Health Medical Center, it was announced that he was in critical condition due to the wound.

WREG-TV reported that as gunshots were fired in the stadium, Lil Baby was quickly escorted offstage and was reportedly not injured.

The Memphis Police Department took to X (formerly Twitter) to share limited details, including the time of the incident and that, at the current time, the shooter’s identity was not yet known.

Ahead of the show, the entertainer took to Instagram to upload an image behind the scenes to share his excitement for the evening’s performance. Following the incident, fans have flooded the comment section of the same post to discuss their thoughts on the tragic news.

One user, claiming to be a native of the area, wrote, “we sorry i promise.”

Another penned, “we so sorry cuh they do this everywhere jus go to southaven next time.”

One supporter upset by the news was concerned that the incident would mean that in the future Lil Baby wouldn’t return for future tours, writing, “N**** ain’t never coming back now.”

Neither Lil Baby nor his representatives have issued a statement about the shooting.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: more TV shows should star Kurt Russell and Godzilla. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is the first of hopefully many collaborations between the legends.

The Apple TV+ and Toho series is the latest installment in MonsterVerse, which also includes Kong: Skull Island, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and Godzilla vs. Kong, a movie where a skyscraper-sized gorilla punches a radioactive lizard in the face. It’s good. There’s no Kong in the trailer above, but there is John Goodman running away from what looks like Kumonga, two generations of Russells (Kurt and his son Wyatt), and Godzilla. Some call him the king of the monsters; I call him my friend.

Here’s more:

Following the thunderous battle between Godzilla and the Titans that leveled San Francisco, and the shocking revelation that monsters are real, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters tracks two siblings following in their father’s footsteps to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army officer Lee Shaw (played by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows. The dramatic saga – spanning three generations – reveals buried secrets and the ways that epic, earth-shattering events can reverberate through our lives.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, which also stars Anna Sawai, Kiersey Clemons, Ren Watabe, Mari Yamamoto, Anders Holm, Joe Tippett and Elisa Lasowski, premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday, November 17th.

A TMZ report from last month indicated that Rihanna and ASAP Rocky’s second child was born on August 3, and that the child, a boy, had a first name starting with R. Now it appears we have more concrete info on that front.

The Blast obtained the baby’s supposed birth certificate and the document indicates that his name is Riot Rose Mayers, and that he was born on August 1 (so not the 3rd) at 7:41 a.m. in Los Angeles’ Cedar Sinai Hospital. Rocky, meanwhile, recently released a new song called “Riot (Rowdy Pipe’n).”

Riot is Rihanna and Rocky’s second child, their first being RZA Athelston Mayers, whose name was revealed earlier this year. RZA, the Wu-Tang Clan rapper after whom the Rihanna/Rocky baby was named, was flattered by the news, saying, “[It’s] a great honor to know that there’s another generation that’s not even of my own household that feels the strength and the inspiration of that name. RZA [isn’t] only a name, it’s a title. So it’s an honor and I salute her and ASAP and their family. All the blessings in the world from me.”

In non-baby news, Rihanna just linked back up with Puma and revealed her first sneaker with the brand since the reunion.

In a Rolling Stone expose, Jimmy Fallon was accused of being “dismissive,” “irritable,” and “erratic” to employees of The Tonight Show, leading to a “toxic” work environment (and dressing rooms being turned into “crying rooms”). Things got so bad that guest Jerry Seinfeld reportedly made Fallon apologize to a crew member he was being crappy to. Fallon was offered a chance to comment before the piece went live (his representatives declined), but now that the dirt is out there, he’s apologized for his behavior.

“It’s embarrassing and I feel so bad,” Fallon said on a Zoom call to staffers, according to Rolling Stone. “Sorry if I embarrassed you and your family and friends… I feel so bad I can’t even tell you.” He did not intend to “create that type of atmosphere,” and stated that current showrunner Chris Miller, the show’s ninth in nine years, is “a great leader” and isn’t going anywhere.

A spokesperson for NBC defended the program in a statement, saying, “We are incredibly proud of The Tonight Show, and providing a respectful working environment is a top priority,” the spokesperson said. “As in any workplace, we have had employees raise issues; those have been investigated and action has been taken where appropriate. As is always the case, we encourage employees who feel they have experienced or observed behavior inconsistent with our policies to report their concerns so that we may address them accordingly.”

The Tonight Show is currently on hiatus and won’t return until the strikes are resolved, although Fallon did recently start a podcast with fellow late-night hosts Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, and John Oliver.

(Via Rolling Stone)

Things haven been up and down with Megan Thee Stallion over the past few years, with the downs thanks mostly to the Tory Lanez shooting. Through it all, though, Megan says there’s one person who has given her unwavering support: “Bongos” collaborator Cardi B.

During a 20-minute livestream in celebration of the “Bongos” video’s premiere last night (September 7), Megan noted, “This space that I’m in mentally, I’m not foolin’ with too many people that don’t give me good vibes, good energy. I have creative boundaries. And Cardi is somebody that I want in my space, in my energy, so it’s so easy to work with her because she got the vibe, she got the energy, I want her in my space.”

She continued, “She been nothing but real to me. The industry is so f*cked up, but this girl is probably the only girl who has been this consistent and this real and this… this just great of a person to me. So I just want to say, Cardi: I really love you so much and I really appreciate it. At a time you could have jumped ship, you never jumped the ship [laughs]! And you always been rocking with me and I’m just so appreciative.”

Watch the whole “Bongos” premiere livestream below.

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