Category: Worldwide

Last year was a big one for Lizzo. She released a monumental single, “About Damn Time,” as well as her much anticipated sophomore album, Special. She also went on a nationwide tour following the album’s release. The first leg of the tour concluded in Inglewood, California over the course of two nights. Portions from each show can be seen on an HBO Max concert film called Lizzo: Live In Concert, which was made available to stream on New Year’s Eve.

During the Inglewood shows, Lizzo was joined by her friends and collaborators, Missy Elliott, SZA, and Cardi B. The latter joined Lizzo in a performance of their 2021 collaboration, “Rumors,” as a surprise to the audience. During the performance, Cardi is seen placing her fingers close to Lizzo’s buttocks, then licking her finger.

Fast-forward to yesterday (January 3), when Lizzo re-shared a clip of this moment to her TikTok, with text reading “Did Cardi really eat my nyash,” “nyash” being a slang term for a large butt.

Cardi and Lizzo seemed to have discussed the matter after the fact, as the video was captioned, “She told me it taste like tamarindo,” referring to a tamarind-flavored Mexican candy.

You can check out the video above.

Lizzo and Cardi B are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

City Girls’ JT and Lil Uzi Vert have been dating for quite a while, and the Miami rapper recently confirmed she’s willing to wait for her beau if things went south. During a recent conversation with Raymonte, he asked JT if she would still be with Uzi if they went to jail for ten years.

“Um…10 years. Yeah. 10 years not really that long. I did 15 [months].” JT said, laughing and jokingly referencing her own time in prison. “You want some drama.”

The couple has been together since 2019.

“I love you uzi,” JT wrote for Uzi’s birthday back in July. “I’m crying making this post because you are literally a dream come true! I feel like with everything I been through in life you are one of my greatest rewards! I wake up every day to either your frown or smile …either works for me, as long as you’re right there.

Uzi has returned the sentiment toward JT. They opened up in a 2021 interview with W Magazine. “She keeps me calm and balances me. Album-wise, she keeps me not saying too much.”

Most recently, JT and Uzi celebrated the holidays together in an extravagant way. The rapper bought JT an expensive gold watch, which she captioned “Thank you santa vert.”

It’s clear the bond between the two musicians is super strong — and will last, even if Uzi doesn’t make bond.

Lil Uzi Vert is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The Dallas Mavericks made an impressive trip to the 2022 Western Conference Finals, famously embarrassing the Phoenix Suns on the road in Game 7 and leaning on a combination of Luka Doncic, Jalen Brunson, and a suddenly frisky defense. Then, the Mavericks lost Brunson in a high-profile defection to the New York Knicks and, with no salary cap mechanism to replace him, the Mavericks entered the 2022-23 campaign with relatively modest expectations for a reigning Final Four team.

Dallas followed those expectations with an underwhelming 15-16 start, and the Mavericks found themselves firmly in the morass that is in the middle of the Western Conference. Since then, Jason Kidd’s team is on a seven-game winning streak with the offense flying high. Dallas is scoring nearly 1.22 points per possession over that sample, pushing the team’s season-long offensive rating to 115.3 with Doncic in the center of the frame.

Doncic isn’t sneaking up on anyone at this point, as he was already considered one of the best players in the NBA. At this juncture in early January, though, he may be the MVP frontrunner, with the Mavericks scoring more than 1.19 points per possession with Doncic on the floor. Dallas is less equipped to sustain without Doncic in the absence of Brunson, but Doncic recently took over with 29 points, seven rebounds, and six assists in the second half of a comeback win over the Rockets. That came on the heels of a 60-point, 21-rebound, 10-assist epic against the Knicks and a 51-point eruption against the Spurs on New Year’s Eve.

All told, Doncic is averaging 44.5 points, 11.3 rebounds and 9.8 assists per game in the last six contests, averaging 16.5 free throw attempts, making 42.9 percent of his three-point attempts, and shooting 56.2 percent from the field. Doncic now leads the NBA in total points (1,201) and points per game (34.3) to go along with top-five marks in assists per game, assist percentage, free throw creation, and more. Doncic has also found recent chemistry with Christian Wood, who is putting up 23.2 points per game on 59.2 percent shooting in the last five, and the offense is truly firing on all cylinders.

To be fair, the Mavericks have slipped on defense. Maxi Kleber is out indefinitely with a hamstring tear, and his absence makes it difficult for Dallas to unlock certain small-ball units on defense. Wood is a negative on defense as well, and with Kleber off the court this season, Dallas is giving up more than 1.14 points per possession.

Dallas isn’t perfect by any stretch, but the Mavericks are taking care of business at home with a 15-5 record and riding Doncic to the highest of highs. It remains to be seen as to whether Doncic is able to keep up this torrid pace, but the Mavericks are rolling and so is he.

Where do the Mavericks rank in this week’s DIME power rankings? Let’s find out.

1. Brooklyn Nets (25-12, Last week — 1st)

The Nets are on a heck of a streak. Brooklyn has won 12 in a row, scoring 1.24 points per possession in the process, and the Nets have a ridiculous 65.9 percent true shooting mark in that sample. Kevin Durant is an MVP candidate, Brooklyn is unstoppable, and the vibes are somehow pristine for a team that appeared totally lost just a few short weeks ago.

2. Memphis Grizzlies (23-13, Last week — 8th)

After a hiccup with four losses in five games, Memphis righted the ship this week. The Grizzlies went 3-0 with a road win over Toronto and home wins over New Orleans and Sacramento. Memphis is in the top five in win-loss record, net rating, and defensive rating, which is a nice foundation for success.

3. Denver Nuggets (24-13, Last week — 3rd)

Denver would’ve been No. 2 if not for a loss to Minnesota to end the week. Still, the Nuggets are 10-3 in the last 13 games with 1.18 points per possession from what is a beautiful offense when it’s clicking.

4. Boston Celtics (26-11, Last week — 2nd)

Losing to Denver on Sunday is fine. It happened on the road and, as evidenced here, the Nuggets are good. But the Celtics followed that up with an embarrassing loss to a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander-less OKC team on Tuesday, which means Boston has to drop at least this far despite the league’s best record.

5. Philadelphia 76ers (22-14, Last week — 5th)

Philly might be ready for a run. The Sixers are playing quite well, beating New Orleans to end the week, and next five games are quite favorable on paper for Philadelphia. That includes games against the Pacers, Bulls, Pistons (twice), and Thunder, with four of the five at home.

6. Dallas Mavericks (22-16, Last week — 9th)

The next 10 days or so will be a nice test for Dallas. The Mavericks have home games against Boston and New Orleans before a long, five-game road trip.

7. Milwaukee Bucks (24-13, Last week — 6th)

In the last three games, Giannis Antetokounmpo is averaging 47.7 points and 17.3 rebounds per game. His 55-point explosion on Tuesday was a career high and, despite other issues with health and roster availability, Giannis’ presence basically ensures competence.

8. Cleveland Cavaliers (24-14, Last week — 7th)

The Cavs had a mini-sweep over the Bulls on each side of New Year’s Day, and the headliner was Donovan Mitchell. He erupted for 71 points in a history-making effort on Monday, which came in a come-from-behind win.

9. New Orleans Pelicans (23-14, Last week — 4th)

Unfortunately, New Orleans will be without Zion Williamson for a few weeks as a result of a hamstring injury. With Brandon Ingram also out, the Pelicans will be short-handed, and New Orleans dips a bit anyway after back-to-back losses.

10. Golden State Warriors (20-18, Last week — 19th)

Typically, the Warriors struggle mightily without Stephen Curry and, by the metrics, that is happening again. However, Golden State is on a five-game winning streak, and the Warriors are now 17-2 at home. Klay Thompson’s 54-point explosion carried the Warriors to a win over Atlanta on Monday, and the Warriors also have a home tilt against the Pistons on Wednesday.

11. Miami Heat (20-18, Last week — 12th)

Slowly but surely, the Heat are chipping away. Miami is 9-4 in the last 13 games, including four wins in the last five. The Heat aren’t where they want to be, but they’re at least staying afloat despite roster challenges.

12. Indiana Pacers (21-17, Last week — 15th)

The Pacers are rolling on offense, scoring more than 1.2 points per possession in the last seven games. That led to six wins despite shaky defense, and Indiana is still the No. 6 seed in the East as the halfway point approaches.

13. New York Knicks (20-18, Last week — 17th)

Julius Randle is playing out of his mind. He is putting up 29.4 points and 12.4 rebounds per game over the last 14 contests, including 33.6 points and 13 rebounds in the last five games. It isn’t perfect for the Knicks, but New York just rocked Phoenix to get back into a tie for the No. 7 seed.

14. Portland Trail Blazers (19-17, Last week — 14th)

Portland appropriately stays in the same slot this week after two wins over bad teams and two losses to good teams. On the positive side, the Blazers absolutely housed the Pistons by 29 on Monday behind a 36-point effort from Jerami Grant.

15. Phoenix Suns (20-18, Last week — 10th)

Yikes. The Suns are 4-11 in the last 15 games. Devin Booker missed nine of those games, with only two wins in his absence, and Phoenix is in the wilderness as a challenging stretch of schedule arrives. The Suns face the Cavs (twice), Heat, Warriors, Nuggets, Wolves, Grizzlies, and Nets over the next 15 days.

16. L.A. Clippers (21-18, Last week — 11th)

Three straight losses prompt a drop for the Clippers, which lost by 10 at home to Miami on Monday. That isn’t a great result, but the team is still 11-5 when Kawhi Leonard plays.

17. Sacramento Kings (20-16, Last week — 18th)

There are defensive challenges, particularly near the rim, but the Kings keep scoring. Sacramento are 20-16 on the strength of the No. 7 offense in the NBA, and the Kings just beat the Nuggets and Jazz (twice) in the last week.

18. Oklahoma City Thunder (16-21, Last week — 20th)

It was certainly an outlier performance, but OKC scored 150 (!) points against Boston on Tuesday. It was the most points scored by the Thunder since moving to OKC from Seattle, and it all happened without Gilgeous-Alexander.

19. Los Angeles Lakers (16-21, Last week — 25th)

The Lakers clearly aren’t the same without Anthony Davis, but LeBron remains absurd. He put up 47 points in a road win over Atlanta on his birthday, followed it up with 43 points in Charlotte, and James has scored 27 points or more in 11 straight games. He’s a robot.

20. Washington Wizards (17-22, Last week — 26th)

It’s been a weird season for the Wizards. Washington lost ten games in a row beginning on Nov. 30 but, once the Wizards stopped that skid, they won six out of eight. The losses came on the road to Utah and Milwaukee as well, and Washington is now 8-2 when Delon Wright plays this season. Shouts to Delon Wright.

21. Utah Jazz (19-21, Last week — 16th)

The Jazz have to drop in the standings after five straight losses. That is a straight-ahead reality, but it is worth noting that Utah’s defeats came by a total of 15 points. They weren’t getting rocked.

22. Chicago Bulls (16-21, Last week — 22nd)

Chicago lost five of six games around the Christmas holiday, but the loss was at home to Houston (yikes) and the Bulls just lost two in a row to Cleveland. Obviously, the Bulls are quite a bit better than the Cavs, but it doesn’t help the team’s standing.

23. Orlando Magic (13-24, Last week — 13th)

We touched on Orlando’s upswing last week and, right on cue, the Magic lost three in a row. All three losses came by double figures with ugly marks on offense and defense. No reason to panic, of course, but it was a reminder not to get over one’s skis.

24. Minnesota Timberwolves (17-21, Last week — 24th)

Minnesota stays level this week, though the Wolves would have fallen if not for a nice home win over the Nuggets on Monday. The Wolves do have a glaring excuse with a 17-game absence from Karl-Anthony Towns, but the win over Denver stopped a six-game losing streak and that isn’t something to celebrate with fireworks.

25. Toronto Raptors (16-21, Last week — 21st)

The Raptors are 5-12 in the last 17 games. There are some injury issues, but Toronto has given up 117 points per 100 possessions and this roster can’t win with that kind of defensive performance.

26. Atlanta Hawks (17-20, Last week — 23rd)

Are the Hawks actually a bottom-five team? Probably not, but they’ve been playing like one. Atlanta seemingly can’t function without Clint Capela, who is out with a calf issue, and the Hawks are 4-10 in the last 14 games with an active four-game losing streak. Given that the Hawks are in the middle of a California trip, it also isn’t guaranteed to improve anytime soon.

27. San Antonio Spurs (12-25, Last week — 27th)

The Spurs have been a little better lately with a 3-5 mark in the last eight games, but some reality arrived on Monday. San Antonio gave up 139 to the absurdly hot Nets and lost by 36 points. That’s not great for ye ole net rating.

28. Charlotte Hornets (10-28, Last week — 28th)

It wasn’t supposed to be like this for Charlotte. Granted, expectations were low, but the Hornets being No. 30 in offense is almost unthinkable. A home loss to the Lakers without AD didn’t help the vibes to begin 2023.

29. Detroit Pistons (10-30, Last week — 30th)

The Pistons won twice this week, which is enough to counteract a 29-point loss in Portland on Monday and escape from the basement. Detroit still has the worst record in the league, but it was a productive week on the whole.

30. Houston Rockets (10-27, Last week — 29th)

We have a new No. 30 after the Rockets lost nine of the last ten games. Houston has been blasted by 10.0 points per 100 possessions during that downturn and a trip to New Orleans on Wednesday won’t be any fun.

The House of Representatives is currently being held hostage by a rogue group of unhinged Republicans largely led by Matt Gaetz while a man who has lied about everything in his life — including being sworn into congress yesterday — is about to be sworn into congress. But Seth Meyers kicked off Tuesday night’s “A Closer Look” with the story that (at least in this author’s opinion) mattered most: Rudy Giuliani’s bizarre, completely unintelligible, and unintentionally hilarious New Year video greeting from Donald Trump’s New Year’s Eve bash at Mar-a-Lago.

As Meyers explained:

Rudy was at Mar-a-Lago to celebrate New Year’s [Eve] with a bunch of other normal, well-adjusted people. And to ring in the new year he recorded, then posted online, a very bizarre video where you can’t hear a word he’s saying. We’re going to show you the video he himself posted online — but again, none of this will be intelligible to you. Since he’s completely drowned out by the noise of the party, but apparently doesn’t realize it.

Yes, it’s a video you must watch for yourself to believe. And what makes it so mesmerizing is that the noise blocking Rudy out is the sound of a band banging out a super high-energy rendition of Kenny Loggins’ “Footloose.” Meyers considers the choice of song fairly ironic, though, considering that the crowd they’re playing it for “is almost certainly medically incapable of doing the Footloose dance.”

“‘Footloose’ sounds like the excuse Rudy would give for being late to a meeting,” Meyers added.

You can watch the full clip above.

Dr. Mehmet Oz has stayed relatively silent since being defeated by John Fetterman following a highly combative Senate race. And it’s no wonder, since even Tucker Carlson laughed his butt off at Oz’s viral “crudités” video, which saw the former daytime TV show host grocery shopping (for a veggie tray) as though he was guest-editing an old-school GOOP newsletter. This somehow turned out to be more embarrassing than revelations about Oz’s New Jersey mansion.

When the “crudités” fallout went down, Fetterman’s campaign pounced on the chance to use the veggie scandal to fundraise half a million dollars. So, you’d better believe that Team Fetterman kept the brand strong. Here’s word from comms director Joe Calvello, who provided proof that a fancy-ass veggie platter made an appearance while a suited-up Fetterman was sworn into the Senate.

Fetterman tweeted a clip of the swearing-in ceremony (which he called “the honor and privilege of a lifetime”) with his wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, by his side.

He also ribbed his own propensity for wearing shorts during formal moments, but do not fret because one of his sons represented.

People were delighted to see this happen, even if they initially missed the ceremony due to the GOP infighting of the ongoing, messy House GOP Speaker election.

Suited Fetterman is the best villain, right? On social media, his supporters agreed while pointing towards Oz (probably) sitting at home in New Jersey.

There’s still hope that Fetterman will bust out a hoodie at the U.S. Capitol. Stay tuned.

Following the passing of Barbara Walters, who died shortly before the New Year at the age of 93, The View dedicated an entire episode to the veteran newscaster as co-hosts both new and old reminisced about their favorite moments with Walters. However, one person was noticeably missing: Rosie O’Donnell.

Originally, the comedian’s spokesperson said that it was simply a matter of scheduling, and she was unable to reschedule a flight, which tracks given the recent turmoil at airports. However, in a new Instagram post, O’Donnell admitted that she was afraid she’d get too emotional amongst the massive The View gathering.

Via PEOPLE:

“I looked on you on BW tribute today,” the fan wrote on O’Donnell’s TikTok, the comment popping up in a bubble on the screen.

“Yeah, they invited me, but I wasn’t able to make it,” O’Donnell, 60, responded in a subdued tone, sharing it on her Instagram.

“You know, I didn’t want to be in a big group of people — I was worried that I would get upset and um, didn’t want to do that, so, there you go,” she said.

While O’Donnell’s fans were completely understanding, her longtime friend Debi Mazar rushed to Rosie’s defense in the comments and threw a little shade at The View in the the process.

“Mourning is personal & PRIVATE,” Mazar wrote. “A display for PR purposes is kind of vulgar, in my opinion. Barbara ADORED you. Remember when she came backstage after your wonderful performance in The Vagina Monologues? She came just for you.”

(Via PEOPLE)

For most Las Vegas tourists, the old mantra of what happens there stays is supposed to stay there. But music superstar Adele wants her message to be shared with the masses. During her New Year’s Eve residency show at Caesars Palace, the “Easy On Me” revealed that she’s been battling sciatica.

The songwriter took a moment to address the crowd confessing, “I have to waddle these days as I have really bad sciatica,” as she navigated the massive stage. The chronic condition causes neuropathic pain through the sciatic nerve, which can affect an individual’s ability to walk, amongst other things.

When her Weekends with Adele residency was first announced, the Grammy-Award winner shared she was ‘incredibly nervous’ with the undertaking as she was ‘not a big touring artist.’ Hence, the show needed to be perfect. However, nearing opening night, the singer postponed it, stating she was not feeling like herself, was a ‘shell of a person,’ and didn’t want to cheat fans out of a stellar performance. Now, as Adele opened up about her condition, fans have expressed a great deal of empathy for her, as the condition may have been the cause of the delays in the beginning.

As fans shared their support on social media, disability lifestyle expert Ola Ojewumi commended Adele for her bravery, encouraging other celebrities quietly fighting a medical condition to do the same.

Recently, iconic singer Celine Dion shared that she had been diagnosed with a rare and incurable neurological disorder that impacts her ability to sing. In addition, celebrities Selena Gomez and Nick Cannon have shared their journey with lupus in great detail. Whereas the late actor Chadwick Boseman decided to keep his colon cancer prognosis quiet.

Despite her condition, Adele has pushed through each sold-out show leaving fans in awe.

Hours after tweeting her round of thank you notes to members of the WWE, Mecedes Varnado debuted her post-Sasha Banks persona as part of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Wrestle Kingdom 17 — Mercedes Moné — from the Tokyo Dome.

Moné’s music hit shortly after Kairi successfully defended the IWGP Women’s Championship against Tam Nakano with the insane elbow off the top rope. Moné then made her way to the ring and extending a hand for Kairi before pulling her in and dropping the champ. Moné grabbed the mic and introduced herself before challenging Kairi to a title match on February 18 at Battle of the Valley in San Jose.

Moné became a free agent when the calendar turned to 2023, after reportedly attempting to negotiate money in the range of what Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch make. WWE allegedly balked at that price, per the Wrestling Observer, setting up Tuesday night’s events and Moné’s slew of “thank you” notes to the like of WWE, William Regal, Triple H, the WWE Universe, Vince McMahon, and a special one to Sasha Banks.

Moné last appeared in WWE in May 2022, walking out on the company with her then-partner Naomi. While Moné is off enjoying a fresh start elsewhere, Naomi is reportedly “almost certainly be returning to WWE” herself, according to the Wrestling Observer.

The Last of Us is HBO’s most anticipated adaptation of an existing property since Game of Thrones premiered in 2011. (Sorry, Westworld.) The two series share other similarities — including cast members Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey — but the biggest, and potentially most problematic, is: what happens when the show catches up to the books, in the case of Game of Thrones, and the video games, in the case of The Last of Us?

We know what happened with Game of Thrones, but The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann isn’t concerned about having a stinker of a final season. “We have no plans to tell any stories beyond adapting the games,” he told the Hollywood Reporter. “We won’t run into the same issue as Game of Thrones since Part II doesn’t end on a cliffhanger.” Craig Mazin, who wrote the show with Druckmann, added, “I don’t have any interest in a spinning-plates-go-on-forever show. When it becomes a perpetual motion machine, it just can’t help but get kind of… stupid. Endings mean everything to me.”

Season one of The Last of Us will tell the story of the first game (with some changes), while season two is likely to cover The Last of Us Part II. If the reception to the show is anything like the feedback to the sequel game, you’ll either think it belongs in the TV Hall of Fame, or spend hours complaining about it on Reddit. So, look forward to that.

The Last of Us premieres on HBO on January 15.

(Via the Hollywood Reporter)

After years of waiting, the world will finally get to meet Ellie and Joel, the unlikely duo who must navigate the post-apocalyptic zombie wasteland, in HBO’s adaptation of The Last Of Us.

A series based on the hit Playstation game has been in the works for a while, and will finally come to life when the show premieres on January 15th. Bella Ramsey will portray Ellie, a teen who is immune to the zombifying infection, meaning that she might be the key to a vaccine, as long as she is alive. Pedro Pascal plays Joel, Ellie’s grumpy but loving watcher who is tasked with protecting her. The cast also includes Gabriel Luna, Nick Offerman, Melanie Lynskey, and Anna Torv.

The series is rumored to be one of the most expensive television projects in Canada, where it was filmed from July 2021 until June 2022. So the pressure is on for this show to be good. Luckily for fans, the original game developer Neil Druckmann penned a handful of episodes alongside screenwriter Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) so it should still maintain the show’s original integrity.

After being ordered in 2020, the show was initially set to consist of ten episodes, which was then reduced to nine. According to the WGA writing credits for the series, Druckmann and Mazin co-wrote the first two episodes, Druckmann wrote the eighth, and Mazin penned the final episode. The good news? Episode one is a whopping hour and 25 minutes long! Hey, it’s not Stranger Things length, but that’s a good thing.

The series will air weekly from January 15th to March 12th on HBO.

(Via Variety)