Category: Worldwide

In early October, a month before Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden, he contracted COVID-19 and became the most visible novel coronavirus case in the world. And according to new reports, Trump’s battle with the disease and its symptoms was much worse than the public was initially told.

According to the New York Times, Trump’s condition rapidly deteriorated, and there was talk of him being hooked up to a ventilator before he was moved to Walter Reed for further treatment:

His prognosis became so worrisome before he was taken to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center that officials believed he would need to be put on a ventilator, two of the people familiar with his condition said.

The people familiar with Mr. Trump’s health said he was found to have lung infiltrates, which occur when the lungs are inflamed and contain substances such as fluid or bacteria. Their presence, especially when a patient is exhibiting other symptoms, can be a sign of an acute case of the disease.

Trump’s doctors at Walter Reed famously downplayed Trump’s case and treatments, withholding medical information about his oxygen levels and what medications he had been prescribed until days after they were administered. But the Times report says that Trump’s oxygen levels plunged “into the 80s” when anything in the low 90s is considered a serious medical issue. The report has more details about the Trump administration’s frantic search for a treatment program not yet approved by the FDA called Regeneron, which helped Trump recover. There may even have been some Regeneron in the White House when he left office:

Regeneron shipped a package of doses that included extras, “in case of any administration issues,” a company spokeswoman said.

The extras were never returned. Dr. Conley at one point told associates they had been sitting in a refrigerator in the White House’s medical office.

The new details don’t change what happened in the Trump administration in October, but it does reassure plenty of people who felt like something was off about the way everything played out. Trump was much sicker than he wanted anyone to know, and despite months of downplaying the pandemic’s severity and impact on millions of Americans, it took the best healthcare in the country to save Trump’s life when it inevitably started spreading in the White House.

[via NY Times]

There’s something therapeutically serene about Robin Wright’s directorial debut, Land. Filmed in Alberta for just about a month, its mountain landscapes that protect Edee (played by Wright) from the outside world look awfully appealing these days. Edee escapes to this terrain after a terrible trauma. Wright didn’t know it at the time of filming, but the film, now, during a worldwide trauma, takes on a whole new meaning. Escaping to the mountains to ride all this out doesn’t seem like the worst idea.

Edee finds some solace in the company of local man Miguel (Demián Bichir). The two have esoteric conversations about Yoda and Tears for Fears, which lighten the mood in a pretty heavy movie, and that’s where we start when we spoke to the ever delightful Robin Wright. (Also, when I had time to bring up one of her older films, she did seem a little surprised that it was Toys and not The Princess Bride or Forrest Gump, but that movie has kind of haunted me since I saw it in theaters. It’s a very strange movie.)

I wasn’t expecting a deep philosophical discussion about Star Wars during this movie.

[Laughs] Right? Got to go obscure. Got to get some levity.

I did wonder with Demián Bichir’s character how many people out there don’t know who Yoda is, but are extremely familiar with the music of Tears for Fears?

Right?

The Venn diagram between those two sects seems like it would intersect a lot.

I think so, too. I love that Aaron Dignam added that to the script, who’s one of our writers. We were just giggling. We were like, he’s got to be funny, this guy. He’s so frugal with his words. He’s just kind of matter of fact, and only speaks when it’s necessary. And, he’s almost like a gentle giant. You know?

As the director, are you at all responsible to have to go to Tears For Fears and ask if you can sing “Everybody Wants to Rule the World“ in a movie?

Well, no, you have a music supervisor who does all of those negotiations and asks, and things like that. And we had a couple of choices, I think only two choices, maybe three, that we could use, financially. You have to pay to sing a movie.

I guess one of the reasons I’m curious about this is, I don’t know if you saw Ethan Hawke’s movie on Tesla, but he sings…

No, it’s on my list. Oh, yeah, what does he sing?

He sings this Tears for Fears song.

Get out of here.

Yeah, he does a performance as Tesla singing “Everybody Wants to Rule the World.”

Oh, my goodness. I love it.

So, I wonder when these lists of songs come, is it one of the most reasonably priced famous songs?

I wonder! I wonder what it costs? But yeah, exactly.

When was this filmed?

This was filmed, my gosh, what are we, ’21 now? I think we shot it in 2019.

Yeah, I have no concept of time like most people anymore.

Like, where are we?

“Oh, that was two years ago?”

Exactly. “What’s my name?”

So, I’m wondering even for you, as the star and director of this film, if it plays differently for you considering the past 10 months? As in the idea of going into the middle of nowhere to ride this out is not unappealing.

Exactly. And I think a lot of people are going to resonate with that, especially given this last year we’ve all been in. Nature is medicine. And I think a lot of us are feeling that more and more each day.

You’ve never directed before. How do you wind up being the director of this particular movie?

It came to me almost three years ago, it was during the time of all the random shootings that were going on. And I was just thinking about the amount of grief people were feeling. And how did they get through? How did they find their way? And everybody does it differently. And this script just moved me. I was like, this is one person’s experience, one person’s journey of going through the grief. And we always have to have somebody in our life that helps us through difficult times and helps us see the light and have hope again. I loved how uplifting the end of this story was. It’s so empowering, that you can get through the other side.

But, it also does seem to kind of be saying that no matter what you’re going through, maybe secluding yourself off from the rest of the world is not the best idea?

Right. And that you do need others. It’s about human connection and the necessity of that.

So this is the first movie you directed, and you also star in it. Directing a first movie seems difficult enough, why also star in it, which also seems difficult? Combining them seems like really doing really two difficult things, when you haven’t done one of them before.

That is very true. You couldn’t have said it better.

Why do that to yourself?

Why do that to yourself? Well, it was never the intention for me to be in it. We had a time crunch situation.

I see.

Once we got financed, we had a very slim window in which to get a cast and go shoot it, and get the four seasons that we needed, and we only had 29 days to shoot the movie.

Oh, wow.

So, we were like, wow, we don’t have the luxury of time to wait. Weeks, possibly months to cast it. And the producer said, “Robin, I think you’re just going to have to do it.” And I said, “All right, I’m going to be there anyway. Let’s go.”

I have a feeling that producer had that up the sleeve the whole time.

Maybe she did, that little whippersnapper. She may have.

“Look, I have got bad news. You’re just going to have to do it.” I have a feeling she knew that from the beginning.

And maybe she did. I’m going to ask her.

The other thing I sometimes hear is, “Well, we couldn’t afford the actor we wanted, and the only person that we could afford was me, and I’m the director. And to get people to see it, I had to star in it.”

Yes. That’s probably partially true here, as well.

Was there an actor that you envisioned?

We had ideas. You’re sent a list, a very short list of people that can get your movie financed. And we couldn’t get a commitment from anybody. And, also, you’re possibly dealing with schedule conflicts. Sometimes you go to cast somebody and they’re like, we really want to do it, but I’m still on a movie, can you push your dates two weeks? Or, can we start earlier than you would like? And we couldn’t, we didn’t have that freedom.

You filmed this in Alberta?

Yes. Alberta, Canada.

Who wouldn’t want to spend a month looking at that scenery?

Exactly. Well, we were ready. It was definitely just shifting gears quickly, and just going. And it’s a job. You know, acting is a job, just like any other. It’s an emotional job in a different aspect, obviously. But, we had talked about the movie so much, and I had spoken with two very experienced experts in the field of trauma. And he said, “Let’s you and I do a session. And I’m going to talk to you as if you’re Edee.”

Oh, that’s interesting.

And it was the most enlightening two-hour session I’ve ever had. I cried. I laughed. I felt renewed at the end of the session. I felt like I peeled back the onion of my own traumas. It was so beneficial to talk to these doctors about how do you help someone get through these phases?

When you’re doing this, do you only talk in character? You said you were peeling back some of your own trauma. Do you talk about specifics in your own life, or do you stick to Edee’s specifics?

I was sticking to Edee’s specifics, because we knew what her story was. And, it was always about, we have to achieve getting to the end of the movie, which is about empowerment. When you come out on the other side with the help of a beautiful human and kindness.

Since you’re directing yourself, and you’ve obviously worked with a lot of great directors over the years, do you ever think what would this director be saying to me right now?

Yeah. And having the discussions about this very thing that you and I are talking about, when you’re having multiple discussions in prep, and you’re talking with your producers who you know are going to be there every day. And I have to say it was basically made successful by my two incredible editors, the way they cut the movie. We had multiple scenes of her past that we shot and we got in the editing room and we were like, we don’t need them. They were pulling us out of the movie. So, we chose to keep the mystery going.

Is there anything that goes through your head? Like, oh, what would Patty Jenkins say to me right now? Or what would David Fincher say to me right now? I don’t know if that goes through your head at all, or if that’s not the way it works.

I didn’t really have to go there. It’s basically what is already in your wheelhouse, having been an actor for over 30 years and worked with multiple great directors. And you do, you pick up things from all of them. Different little tidbits that you’re like, oooooh, I like that process. Or, I like that technique.

What’s an example of that?

I had the opportunity to work with Anthony Minghella on a movie [Breaking and Entering] years ago, and I never forgot his way. I just connected with the way he directed. He didn’t just give you a descriptive word as an actor, which is very hard to play. Instead of saying, “Oh, can you just come into the room and have more energy next take?” He would tell a story. Every take, if he wants something different out of you, he would give you a story. And you think, this story has nothing to do with the scene. What are we? And he would walk away and he’d say, “And, action.” And you would do a completely different take because he had infused you with this beautiful little vignette. And then you execute that as the character. And you’re like, wow, that was a completely different take. I hadn’t even thought about that, to do it that way.

Yeah that’s much better than, “more energy.”

Yeah. Well, what does that mean?

Exactly.

How do I get there? How do I get to more energy? So, you do have to have more of a description of the environment, not just an adjective.

I’m going to mention one of your older movies…

Oh?

It’s probably not one you’re thinking I’m going to bring up. So I saw Toys when it was in theaters. It’s very strange. I guess I’m going to word it this way. In my mind, if there was a book written about the production of this movie, it would be extremely interesting. Am I correct?

Oh, without question. I mean, just the behind the scenes stories, that’s half of the book right there.

It’s one of the first movies I saw in a theater where I was old enough to think, I don’t think this turned out exactly how they wanted it to.

I love that you said that. That’s so great.

Why’s that?

Are you talking about this movie, or Toys?

Toys.

Because I was like, it’s kind of the same on this one.

Really? This movie at least seems like exactly what you wanted? I thought this was your vision.

Yes. It was. But you’re thinking the whole time, is it going to resonate with people?

Oh, I see.

And it worked, meaning don’t give all the information away at the top of the film. Save it. Trust your audience. Let them go on that journey with you. They will stay engaged.

I want to be on the record. I like Land a lot more than I like Toys.

Aw. That’s so sweet. Thank you.

I want that to be clear.

They’re two very different movies, Mike.

‘Land’ opens in theaters this weekend. You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.

Every social media manager craves engagement. It’s why every day there are new prompts thrown out there by brands and teams to get responses and boost those sweet, sweet engagement figures. However, sometimes, you get something more than you bargained for when you go out there on the internet streets looking for interaction.

This is what happened to the Tampa Bay Rays today, when they got roasted so bad by the Wendy’s corporate account that, more than three hours later, they have yet to say anything else.

It started, as they so often do, with a prompt from the folks at Wendy’s for National Roast Day, which I swear the only people that know what made up holiday each day is are social media managers.

Anyways, the Rays walked in and asked for their roasting and what resulted was so vicious that it set Baseball Twitter on fire.

Wendy’s is referencing how the Rays pulled Blake Snell in the midst of a pitching gem against the Dodgers in Game 6 of the World Series after just 73 pitches in the sixth inning, holding a 1-0 lead. Tampa’s bullpen went on to give up two runs that inning and lost the game 3-1 and, in turn, the series. It is a truly incredible roast from the Wendy’s account that required a pretty decent baseball knowledge to dish out, knowing the exact weak spot to hit the Rays.

Snell, who is now on the Padres, saw the tweet and joined in the cacophony of people responding the savagery they just witnessed on their timeline.

The lesson of all of this is to never ask to be roasted, because you’re just setting yourself up to possibly get torched into oblivion for no reason other than the allure of those hot social engagement numbers.

In addition to co-hosting the release of Guapdad 4000’s album lead single “How Many” this weekend, Los Angeles-based indie label 88rising has also announced its Lunar New Year celebration: A livestream concert featuring Filipino-American singers Jay Som and Yeek, and indie-soul band Ginger Root. The Lunar New Year theme is one close to the hearts of 88rising’s founders and artists, as the label primarily platforms artists of Asian descent. Although the term is incorrectly used, Lunar New Year is sometimes referred to as “Chinese New Year” as many Asian cultures subscribe to a lunar calendar rather than the Western stand Roman calendar.

In addition to celebrating a new year, the focus of the livestream will also be on supporting Asian Americans Advancing Justice, the Los Angeles-based rights organization which advocates for Asians, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Its cause was especially highlighted throughout 2020 when the outbreak of the novel COVID-19 coronavirus led to an increase in anti-Asian sentiment, spurred by the invective spouted from the twice impeached former game show host who used to reside in the White House. Since then, Asian-Americans — especially the elderly — have been the targets of vicious, bigoted attacks, making the work done by Advancing Justice-LA all the more vital and urgent.

88rising has been one of the most prolific streamers for concerts throughout the pandemic, holding the Asia Rising Forever festival in May to celebrate the label’s fifth anniversary, the TikTok-based Summer Kickback, and December’s Double Happiness Winter Wonder Festival. You can catch the Lunar New Year Celebration Saturday, February 13 at 6 pm PT on 88rising’s YouTube.

Steve Kerr had a very nice career as an NBA player and, so far, a really nice career as a head coach. During his playing days, Kerr won five rings with the Chicago Bulls and the San Antonio Spurs, and since making the jump to coaching, he’s lifted the Larry O’Brien trophy three times as the head coach of the Golden State Warriors.

Not a lot of people know what it’s like to win a title, even fewer know the feeling of winning several, and being able to call yourself an eight-time champion firmly puts you in the Hall of Fame in some capacity, even if you’re only halfway to tying Ric Flair. This week, Tom Brady came really close to being on the same tier as Kerr in terms of titles won, as he picked up his seventh Super Bowl in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 31-9 thrashing of the Kansas City Chiefs.

Kerr was asked about Brady winning the Lombardi Trophy yet again, and as someone who is always eager to get a joke off, he decided to throw down the gauntlet.

“Well, yeah. If Brady can get one more, then he can catch me,” Kerr said. “I’m sure that’s what he’s going for.”

Kerr’s being silly, but it is incredibly fun to imagine Brady — who has gotten to where he is in large part because of his ability to get motivated by any little slight against him — spending this entire offseason training with the singular goal of knocking Steve Kerr off his perch. There’s also a non-zero chance this is the case because of the aforementioned “any little slight” thing, so if someone could read this quote to Tom Brady just so we can get his reaction, that’d be pretty revealing.

Inside The NBA has been on the air for more than 30 years and is, for many, the most beloved sports studio show of all-time. Ernie Johnson has been there from the beginning, joined by various analysts in the early years, but Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley became permanent fixtures, eventually joined by Shaquille O’Neal.

That group will tell their story, along with the help of others who have been guests or just famous fans of the show, in a four-part documentary series on TNT starting March 4. The first trailer for the series shows how it will trace the history of the show, but also tell some never before told stories of what goes on behind the scenes at Studio J and how they found their identity as one of the more fun sports shows on TV.

It’s interesting that this series comes out at a time where the tide has, to an extent, turned a bit against Inside The NBA recently, at least with regards to how they talk about the current state of the game. Shaq’s seemingly endless spats with current players and occasional moments where he and Barkley are unaware of the existence of a player before they play on TNT haven’t exactly endeared them to some who crave a bit more.

Still, they are the most entertaining studio show on television and the stories that come out of this docuseries figure to only add to the lore of some of the show’s funniest moments.

There is No “I” in Threesome (HBO Max documentary film) — Plenty of people want to try a threesome, but (arguably) the vast majority of these endeavors tend to backfire. That rule is not set in stone, but given that the tagline of this film discusses how someone always gets “screwed,” let’s just say, “Buyer beware.” Non-monogamy is always a lot more complicated in reality than it would appear to be in fantasy, so settle back and watch these couples light their relationship on fire for your entertainment. You’re welcome.

Red Dot (Netflix film) — This might be a cautionary tale for people who decide it’s a great idea to rekindle their marriages in the unforgiving wilderness — who knows? For sure, though, this is a claustrophobic tale about what happens when a sadistic killer points a red laser dot into Nadja and David’s tent, and that act sends them fighting for their lives. Naturally, a lot of marriage drama will happen along the way, as they attempt to save themselves in the snowy terrain. I guess couple’s counseling was a no-go, but that’s not nearly as entertaining as escaping into other people’s hell when they find themselves feeling like they’re on the other end of a video-game gun. Also, there’s a dog in this trailer, and nothing had better happen to him, or I’m gonna call for John Wick vengeance.

Squared Love (Netflix film) — This romcom follows a teacher who’s moonlighting as a model, all to pay off some debt, but then she meets a womanizer/journalist, who’s being blackmailed to appear in some advertisements. They become worst enemies, and we can probably guess (given the whole romcom thing) how these two will proceed, right?

Here are the rest of tonight’s programming highlights:

The Unicorn (CBS, 9:30pm EST) — Wade’s embarrassing verbal slip-up makes things awfully uncomfortable for Shannon, but will he get it?

Clarice (CBS, 10:00pm EST) — The Silence of the Lambs franchise gets the franchise treatment with FBI Agent Clarice Sterling receiving an urgent assignment, one year after rescuing a young woman from a basement of horrors.

The Hustler (ABC, 10:00pm EST) — Host Craig Ferguson stands by while contestants compete for money, and “The Hustler” among them keeps doing his or her secretive and enigmatic thing.

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert — Blake Shelton

Jimmy Kimmel LIve — Kevin James, Kat Dennings, Mammoth WVH

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon — Cardi B, Alex Moffat, Lang Lang

The Late Late Show With James Corden — Mila Kunis, Robin Thicke

Late Night With Seth Meyers — Will Forte, Annie Mumola, Sia

In case you missed this recent awesomeness:

Haute Dog: Season 1C (HBO Max series) — Admit it, you want to watch dogs being styled by competitive groomers and then watch those dogs strut their stuff, right? In this series, those groomers go head-to-tail for “Best in Show” and $10,000 prize, all while transforming K-9s into K-10s. With this batch of episodes, we’ll see a disco dog and a fairy-tale theme, and of course, we could use some safari and superhero dogs. This show is sure to take your mind off everything stressful because no one can hate on dazzling “trans-fur-mations,” right? Woof.

Bubba Wallace became a household name in 2020, as he used his platform as NASCAR’s only Black driver in the Cup Series to push for some much-needed changes in the sport. While he became a face and name folks knew for what he was doing to push the sport forward into being more inclusive and welcoming to people of all backgrounds, he was also having one of his best seasons on the track in his young career.

Wallace had five top-10 finishes with Richard Petty Motorsports, including a fifth place finish at the Daytona fall race, and had his highest finish in the points race at 22nd. With his contract up with RPM, Wallace chose to join a new venture, becoming the lone driver for 23XI Racing, with a star-studded ownership group of Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin. The team has a partnership with Joe Gibbs Racing, where Hamlin still runs, giving them the equipment to immediately compete with the best. It’ll be Wallace’s task to see how high he can take this new team in their first season.

On Wednesday night, they got off to a strong start placing fourth in qualifying, which puts them on the front row for the second of Thursday night’s Duel at Daytona (7:00 p.m. ET on FS1), and will hope to stay near the front to get a top position for Sunday’s Daytona 500. Last week, we got a chance to talk to Wallace on behalf of Kingsford to get his thoughts on getting to start something brand new, working with Hamlin, how surreal it is driving for MJ, and why he’s trying to “get lucky” once again at Daytona.

You’ve got Daytona coming up next week. That’s a place that you’ve had success in the past. What are you looking forward to this week in getting the chance to run at a track that you’ve had success at as you start your career with this new team?

Yeah, just really, making sure we hit the ground with our feet running. But now just making sure we’re ready to go. I’m trying to get down there early just to kind of get acclimated to everything and get comfortable. But doing the work here at the shop, doing the work here, on the phones, you know, just getting the word out there that season’s here, and that we’re excited. Just a lot of good things, a lot of things — A LOT of things — that are moving right now that we’re trying to nail down. But all in all, it’s coming together quite nice.

Is there anything that you can put your finger on about Daytona that makes it a place that you feel comfortable at and is a place that you’ve had the success you’ve had?

Man, it’s really just surviving somehow, some way. I look at Denny, obviously, being the best going for a three-peat here. And Denny and Joey are kind of the best at it, and I feel like they know what they’re doing. And I feel like I’m just lost, but somehow I end up making my way and endin’ up being there at the end of races. So just excited to hopefully continue that tradition and just win one. I mean, it’s not that hard, right?

Right. Sure.

[laughs]

You mention Denny and getting the chance to work with him on this new team. What are the things that you’ve been able to learn from him and your discussions as y’all get this thing started with the wealth of knowledge and experience that he’s able to impart to you?

Yeah, I think you know, the way this deal kind of come about he’s really been hands on just making sure that we’re doing everything the right way and the correct way, and also getting feedback of how we should do certain things. So, it’ll be it’ll be a great partnership. And it’ll be fun competing against but, you know, also racing for him and MJ, and just an incredible opportunity that I’m excited for. We have a lot of good things coming our way. A lot of great partners involved to make our deal successful, both on and off track. So we’re just trying to keep hammering home the right way.

It’s not something that that a lot of folks get a chance to do, especially in in NASCAR, getting to start a new team and really lay the groundwork for something brand new. How much did that play a role in your excitement for making this thing happen and getting the chance to do something with a new venture?

Yeah, that was … whew, I didn’t envy the guys who were doing the dirty work of getting the shop located, getting all the cars and pieces and people in the right place. So I know they had a lot more work than I had to do, but it all come together. It’s cool actually being here at the shop today and and seeing race cars on the floor. People work and finishing up last minute things on our 500 car. So it’s all coming together pretty dang cool. Seeing my name on the doors never get old.

The last thing on this, you’re somebody that grew up in the same era as me. I mean, how cool is it to just start something with Michael Jordan like this?

Yeah, I mean, it’s MJ. Having been able to watch The Last Dance and really kind of get motivated from that was cool. And now to see how it’s transitioned into what it is right now, him being an owner and I’m racing for him, like that it’s kind of surreal. So just going to go out and try to live up to his expectations and just do the best that we can. I know that we all want to see this organization win. We have to do it you know methodically and not get ahead of ourselves.

You’ve got this partnership with Kingsford and what they’re doing with the Preserve The Pit initiative. How did that come together and what drew you to working them on what’s what’s a pretty cool initiative they’ve got going on here?

Yeah, so we’ve been working together for the past year now and and it’s been a lot of fun doing a lot of cool and fun things, but this Preserve The Pit is really special, just because it’s getting the gospel out there about barbecuin’ and making people want to be a part of it and learn how to be better at barbecuin’ — and I need all the help that I can get. But I feel like I’m pretty good at certain things. Cookin’ a steak, I feel like I’m up there, my game is pretty strong. Venturing out, that’s where I start to struggle. So becoming more diverse, I guess in my craft is huge. And that’s what Preserve The Pit’s about. It’s about shining light on people and stories that have made barbecue what it is today, and helping barbecue entrepreneurs through a fellowship. And it’s giving you an immersive training, like a one-on-one mentorship really with the industry leaders throughout the year.

So I think that’s pretty cool. Having professional grill masters out there helping you show their craft, help you get better is really cool. So just be sure for the people that will see this to apply by March 1, 2021 at Kingsford.com/preserve-the-pit and you can be a part of it. I think it’s really cool. Just getting out there and making you want to cook some good food. A knowing that you did it? I mean, who’s not proud of what they cook?

Yeah, I was gonna ask if you were to have to craft a menu for a barbecue? I mean, what’s your go to? You mentioned steaks so I assume that’s on there?

Yeah, steaks. I’m a New York Strip guy, but I’ve cooked a little bit everything from pork butt to chicken to ribs. I’ve even had the honor of doing a Thanksgiving ham. So I’ve kind of ventured out a little bit, not saying it’s the best — not as good as my steak game — but I’ve gotten some stuff out there.

Lastly, I know you’re focused on what’s coming in the future, but what are the things you’ll take away from the last year that you look at as things you can reflect on and grow from as a person and as a driver?

Yeah, I think if we just continue to help one another, help, listen, and understand and show some compassion for one another is huge. Have a lot of empathy for one another is big. And so everything that went on last year I’ve grown from it, learned from it, and, you know, trying to just be bigger and better moving forward. Always looking ahead.

Finding the best bottle of affordable bourbon is no easy task. God knows we’ve tried. There’s a lot to choose from and at these lower price points you’re going to strike a few clunkers. That being said, quite a bit of the cheap bourbon out there is pretty solid (“it is what it is,” but that’s not bad).

In this blind taste-test, we’re trying six cheap(er) bottles of bourbon whiskey and ranking them according to taste alone. The prices range from $13 for a one-liter bottle of Heaven Hill’s Old Style to $26 for a regular-sized bottle of Wild Turkey 101. Of course, these prices can vary wildly depending on where you’re standing when you hand over your cash — those taxes and transportation fees add up.

As for the ranking, it ended up being fairly interesting. A few bottles I usually dig didn’t really pop like usual, but the overall winner was clear as a bell. Let’s get into it!

Part 1: The Taste

Taste 1

Tasting Notes:

There’s distinct vanilla next to a musty oak with a creamy pudding cut with brown spice. Then the sip veers back towards that wood, but it’s light. The woodiness becomes almost like dry wicker, with a slightly sweet edge.

The end is slightly spicy and warming but not overly so.

Taste 2

Tasting Notes:

This is light yet full of mild oak, vanilla pudding, and … apple stems? Or maybe I mean cores — the un-sweet apple parts. There’s a hint of caramel there, sure. But it’s dialed way back. You’re really left with that apple and the overall thin nature of the sip.

Taste 3

Tasting Notes:

This is really soft on the nose with nice nuances of vanilla and molasses (hello, Buffalo Trace). Then there’s this whiff of raw steak. I know that sounds wild, but it was 100 percent there. Imagine you just took a steak out of the fridge to come up to room temp and you’ll get that it’s actually kind of enticing.

On the palate, this is classic Trace — with notes of oak that lead to toffee that lead to cinnamon sticks with a berry fruit end, all while holding onto that lush softness.

Taste 4

Tasting Notes:

Vanilla, corn husks, and cherry candy (Hello, Jim). That cherry candy serves as the backbone for the sip — balancing the dry corn husk and green grassy nature of the dram. This is very easy-drinking, thanks to the overall lightness.

Taste 5

Tasting Notes:

This is really enticing on the nose with subtle hints of vanilla, oak, caramel, and spices leading towards tobacco. Those notes are delivered on the palate, too — as cinnamon sticks mix with brown sugar with a slight fruitiness.

This is just goddamn delicious. So much so that I said those exact words aloud while drinking this dram.

Taste 6

Tasting Notes:

Classic bourbon vanilla and caramel with a cornmeal body. That vanilla has a pudding creaminess with plenty of oak next to a slight bite of black pepper. The spice amps up to a tobacco chewiness by the end.

Part 2: The Ranking

6. Heaven Hill Old-Style Bourbon (Taste 2)

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $13, 1-liter bottle

The Whiskey:

This is Heaven Hill’s entry point bourbon. The stuff is matured (for up to four years) in Heaven Hill’s massive warehouses and blended to be quaffable at a very affordable price.

Bottom Line:

This is very drinkable, though there’s not a lot of “there” there. It’s light, easy, and cheap. It’s definitely a great candidate for mixing cocktails while you’re learning.

5. Jim Beam Black (Taste 4)

ABV: 43%

Average Price: $23

The Whiskey:

This used to be Jim Beam 8 but the age statement was dropped. The idea behind this expression is that it’s a blend of Beam barrels that hit just the right note of classic Jim Beam bourbon flavors — with some of those barrels still reaching eight years old and some younger.

Bottom Line:

I didn’t know where to put this dram. I really like this sip. The cherry candy ended up being the dominant flavor note, alongside those corn husks. Which wasn’t bad at all, just a little less enjoyable than the rest.

3 (tie). Wild Turkey 101 (Taste 1)

ABV: 50.5%

Average Price: $26

The Whiskey:

This is a lot of people’s entry point to bourbon. The juice is classic Turkey that’s blended according to their signature flavor profile and then barely cut down to 101 proof with that soft Kentucky limestone water.

Bottom Line:

This is tasty and easy to drink at the same time. The 101 proof also means it’s a great cocktail mixer that’ll pack a punch without getting drowned out by the sugars, water, and bitters.

3 (tie). Evan Williams Bottled-in-Bond (Taste 6)

ABV: 50%

Average Price: $17

The Whiskey:

Heaven Hill’s Evan Williams is a popular bottle of cheap bourbon with their Bottled-in-Bond expression being a big step up from the entry point bottles. This juice is aged according to strict federal laws which ensure a minimum of four years maturing before watering down to 100 proof.

Bottom Line:

It’s interesting that this and Wild Turkey 101 were tied for me. The higher proof was very enticing and felt familiar. Maybe that was simply because they were positioned as the first and last taste? Anyway, this is a very good bourbon for a very low price that works as a great mixer.

2. Buffalo Trace (Taste 3)

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $24

The Whiskey:

This bourbon was created to celebrate the rebranding of George T. Stagg distillery as Buffalo Trace, back in 1999. Distilling legend Elmer T. Lee came out of retirement to create this expression and it’s been beloved since it hit shelves.

Bottom Line:

I went back and forth on putting this at the number one slot. This is a well-crafted bourbon that really shines as a mixer or on the rocks. Still, it was just fine this time around. There was no real “Ah-ha!” moment. It was just solid and very drinkable, which is all you can really ask for at this price point.

1. Bulleit Bourbon (Taste 5)

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $25

The Whiskey:

This Diageo bourbon has a high-rye mash bill, with 28 percent of the recipe consisting of the spicy grain. While most of the juice is still sourced, Diageo has converted the iconic Stitzel-Weller distillery of Pappy fame into Bulleit’s new distillery and juice from that facility is starting to get in the mix.

Bottom Line:

This did have that “Ah-ha!” moment. Like I mentioned above, this really hit the spot and stood out thanks to the rye. This is also the bottle that probably varies the most wildly in price, depending on which state you’re buying the stuff in.

Still, no questions: It won the day.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

I really was surprised how well Bulleit hit on this tasting. That being said, the only whiskey that really left me “meh” was Heaven Hill. Which, come on, it’s a ridiculously cheap bottle of bourbon. That considered, it’s perfectly fine as a mixer.

Overall, these whiskeys are all perfectly good — caveat coming — for what they are. You have to manage your expectations, but there’s some real nuance in this price range. And while Bulliet was number one with a bullet, it was the Jim Beam Black that drew me back for an extra dram on Sunday night. It’s hard not to enjoy that note of cherry candy in the depths of February.

Country music star Morgan Wallen made headlines recently when he was caught on video shouting a racist slur. After a night out, Wallen was filmed by a neighbor walking up his driveway, appearing intoxicated and yelling to someone with him, “Take care of this “p****-ass mother******!” followed by “Take care of this p****-ass n*****!”

Wallen faced immediate backlash, with radio stations pulling his music, his record label suspending him, his agency dropping him, and the Academy of Country Music Awards revoking his eligibility for its awards ceremony. Wallen apologized, telling TMZ, “I’m embarrassed and sorry. I used an unacceptable and inappropriate racial slur that I wish I could take back. There are no excuses to use this type of language, ever. I want to sincerely apologize for using the word. I promise to do better.”

However, despite the negative PR, sales of his album began to skyrocket, as a bunch of his fans who don’t have a problem with racial slurs rushed to stick it to “cancel culture” and make their own racism heard. Billboard reported that Wallen’s “Dangerous: The Double Album” sold 25,000 copies in the week ending February 4—an increase of 102%.

Jason Isbell, a fellow country musician who wrote one of the songs on Wallen’s album, shared his own brilliant response to the incident and sales surge on Twitter:

“So…A portion of this money goes to me, since I wrote ‘Cover Me Up.’ I’ve decided to donate everything I’ve made so far from this album to the Nashville chapter of the @NAACP. Thanks for helping out a good cause, folks.”

Now that’s putting your money where your mouth is. Instead of profiting off of racism, Isbell is turning around and putting those profits into supporting anti-racist action.

“Even though he didn’t write a lot, he said a lot in this tweet,” Sheryl Guinn, President of the Nashville branch of the NAACP told News 4 Nashville. “It seems like what he’s saying is I want to support equality. I do not want to support hate.”

Guinn also said that the Wallen incident opens up a conversation that needs to be had.

“We have put a lot of focus on Morgan Wallen specifically,” she said, “but he is a very small part of a much larger problem.”

That larger problem is quite neatly showcased in responses to Wallen’s 5-minute apology video he shared on Instagram, nine days after the incident. Despite Wallen’s acknowledgment that there was no excuse for what he said, in comment after comment, fans defend his use of the n-word, saying that he didn’t do anything wrong.

Wallen, to his credit, tells his followers not to defend him.

“Please don’t,” he says in the video. “I was wrong. It’s on me to take ownership for this and I fully accept any penalties I’m facing. The time of my return is solely on me and the work I put in.”

Wallen explains in the video that who he is in the video is not the man he wants to be, and described some of the steps he’s taking to learn.

“I accepted some invitations from some amazing Black organizations, some executives and leaders, to engage in some very real and honest conversations,” he says. He was nervous to accept the invitations, adding, “They had every right to step on my neck … to not show me any grace, but they did the exact opposite. They offered me grace and also paired that with an offer to learn and grow. … That kindness really inspired me to dig deeper on how to do something about this.”

Part of digging deeper is listening with an ear to understand, and Wallen explained how he’s engaging in that process.

“This week I heard first-hand some personal stories from Black people that honestly shook me, and I know what I’m going through this week doesn’t compare to some of the trials I heard about from them. I came away … with a clearer understanding of the weight of my words.”

One challenging element of this story is that how far behind it feels. It is 2021. We just saw months of protests over racial injustice. The use of the n-word by a non-Black person as a manifestation of racism is not something new. While many are praising Wallen for waking up to the fact that his words and actions matter, for many others it’s further proof that so many white Americans have not been listening to the voices of Black Americans who have been talking about this forever.

Another element worth examining is the role of Wallen’s substance use in the incident. In his video, Wallen shared that he had been on “hour 72 of 72 of a bender,” almost as if that somewhat explained his actions. He’s committing to sobriety, which is an excellent step in the right direction. But being drunk doesn’t make people use racial slurs—it just reveals the racial slurs that are already queued up in someone’s head. The fact that he appears to be speaking from the heart and not reading a pre-canned apology suggests sincerity in his desire to change, but as he himself says, the proof will be in the work he puts in.

Racism is too insidious, too ingrained, and too damaging to be given a pass if we ever hope to eliminate it. Accountability, especially for someone with a platform and an audience, is necessary, and we’re seeing that play out here. People decry “cancel culture,” but how much racism is okay, and what is the appropriate reaction to someone using white supremacist language?

It’s not enough to just say, “Oops, sorry” for racist speech, and Wallen seems to understand this. Now let’s hope he can convince his fans of the same thing.