Did you know that Beyoncé is a hardcore South Carolina Gamecocks fan? Apparently, she watched and supported the Dawn Staley-coached team all the way through the NCAA Women’s basketball tournament with her family and enjoyed them so much, she sent Staley a bouquet of flowers to commemmorate the team’s historic, undefeated season and championship win. Staley shared “a video thank you” to Beyoncé as she showed off the gift — which included Cowboy Carter merchandise, naturally — and read the card.”If you know, you know,” she said.
To Coach Staley and the entire South Carolina Gamecocks,
Me and my family watched your games and cheered you on through the entire season. I am so proud of you.
Staley also shouted out all the family members, and noted, “I’ve been in the South for 16 years. I’m a little country too.”
The delightful moment is just one in an endless procession of moments that prove that women’s basketball has arrived this year — and one of the few in which a high-profile voice actually congratulated the winners of the tournament, rather than a certain player on the runners-up.
Beyoncé’s bouquets are well known in the music industry; she has sent them to Cowboy Carter collaborators like Mickey Guyton and Jack White and actresses like Sheryl Lee Ralph for her Abbott Elementary Emmy win, but this is first time she’s sent one to an athlete (she gave Serena Williams a special Gatorade commercial in 2022 upon her retirement, unless she got them and didn’t tell us!) or coach.
In recent days, a new meme has started to surface, and it turns out that Lil Yachty is at the root of it.
As Know Your Meme notes, Yachty performed at the Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash concert in 2021, and a clip of his energetic walk out to the stage has racked up over 4.5 million views on YouTube since it was uploaded on June 2022. Here’s that video:
The unmodified video started to be used as a reaction meme here and there, but it has found new life this April, after a post from X (formerly Twitter) account @AIWarper generated some attention. The tweet includes the video, but modified, using a tool called Viggle AI, to replace Yachty with Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of the Joker.
A version featuring New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau has gone viral in the sports world, so much so that Thibodeau was asked about it in a recent press conference. He revealed that he was originally showed the clip by one of his players, Mitchell Robinson, and that he thought Robinson himself made the video.
Lil Dicky joined Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce for this week’s episode of New Heights, and the episode was packed with Lil Dicky’s signature self-deprecating charm. Around the 40-minute mark, Jason asked Lil Dicky whether he’d had a “welcome to the industry” moment.
“Another story I’ve never told that just came into my head that’s perfect for this moment,” Lil Dicky said. The Dave mastermind then took the audience back to the 2015 BET Experience Sprite Celebrity Basketball Game. Back then, Lil Dicky still had imposter syndrome and did not feel like he belonged on the same roster as Floyd Mayweather, Snoop Dogg, Chris Brown, and John Wall.
“I don’t know how I got in the game to the point where I actually put a lot of stock and import in this game,” he explained. “I got there an hour early to warm up because I literally thought a way that I could get ahead in this industry faster will be, like, scoring 30 points in this game.”
Instead, Lil Dicky was on the bench, and while Chris Brown called Lil Dicky “a dope rapper” pre-game, he also rained on Lil Dicky’s parade. John Wall was the team’s coach and eventually told Dicky he could go in as a substitute for Brown.
“I walk up to Chris, and I’m like, ‘Yo, I’m in for you,’” Lil Dicky said. “And he goes, ‘I’m not coming out.’ Then, there’s 11 guys on the court. Everyone is matched up. I’m clearly the odd man. I look to John Wall, like, ‘Coach!’ And John Wall brings me back over. [The] first thing I say is, like, ‘John, get a grip and have some authority on your team.’ It’s humiliating to send me out there and then pull me back in. It’s so emasculating.”
Once Lil Dicky finally got in the game, he was rewarded by getting “fouled so hard by Deontay Wilder — at the time, heavyweight champion of the world.” He concluded, “I get up. I missed two free throws, and then I played one more meaningless minute. I moved to the end of the bench and just chose not to even make myself available for the rest of the game.”
The following news is big for me, personally, as a Clippers fan since the raggedy Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena days of the 1990s. The “other” LA basketball team is finally getting their own venue for the first time in 25 years after sharing Staples Center — fine, “Crypto.com Arena” — with the Lakers. The Intuit Dome’s grand opening has been set for August 15 and 16, with opening shows by none other than Bruno Mars. The Las Vegas fixture — who is NOT $50 million in debt to MGM — is returning to the City of Angels for the first time in six years.
The Inuit Dome project broke ground in September 2021 after being approved by the City of Inglewood for a new arena just for the Clippers. It’ll actually be the first time the Clippers had full ownership of one of its arenas. It’s also the planned site of the 2026 NBA All-Star Game and the 2028 Summer Olympics. As for why Bruno Mars was chosen to be the arena’s first-ever performer, he explained in a video announcement. “I moved to Inglewood, California when I was 18 years old,” he recalls. “Opening up this arena is a full-circle moment and I can’t wait to celebrate.” Watch that below.
JUST ANNOUNCED: Bruno Mars is performing Intuit Dome’s Grand Opening on August 15th and 16th! Don’t miss these 2 special nights.
Lil Yachty has come full circle. Before music, Yachty worked as a McDonald’s crew member, during which time, he crafted one of his artistic hallmarks — the signature vibrant red hair that made him stand out when he first stepped onto the scene.
Dropping tracks on Soundcloud in between shifts at Mickey D’s, Yachty maintained his momentum before deciding to move to New York to pursue music full-time. Nearly a decade later, Yachty delivered an energetic halftime performance at the 2024 McDonald’s All-American Games this past Tuesday (April 2). Additionally, he starred in a commercial for McDonald’s Canada, which featured him delivering a trippy rendition of the Menu Song.
Yachty’s most recent solo album Let’s Start Here showed us that his name is no longer synonymous with the Soundcloud era. Inspired by psychedelic sounds, Let’s Start Here proved to listeners that Yachty is serious about his artistry and is no flash-in-the-pan. And since its release over a year ago, Yachty has not taken his foot off the gas.
Last month, Yachty announced the launch of Concrete Recordz, as part of a partnership with Quality Control and HYBE. On the roster is his new rap collective, Concrete Boys, comprised of rappers Camo!, DC2TRILL, Draft Day, Karrahbooo, and Yachty himself.
Uproxx chatted with Yachty ahead of his halftime performance, as well as the release of Concrete Boys’ compilation album, It’s Us Vol., 1, which is set to drop Friday (April 5). With 10 years in the game, Yachty isn’t letting up anytime soon — not before pushing more bounds with his own artistry, and cultivating a new generation of movers and shakers.
Hey Yachty, how are you?
I’m blessed, man. Happy that we are having nice sunny days. I had a milkshake. And I’m lactose [intolerant], but I took my lactose pills. I took two of them. And they’re working, so we’re good. It’s always a plus when you’re lactose, and you drink milk, and you’re good. That might be too much information, but you asked, and I’m truthful.
[Laughs] I’m not tripping. How are you feeling, leading up to your performance?
It’s always a good feeling to have a full-circle moment in life. I worked for McDonald’s, and it was the first job I ever had when I was 15 or 16 years old. My McDonald’s commercial also just came out for McDonald’s Canada.
I love your commercial. It’s really trippy! How did that collaboration come together?
Separate from this, actually, McDonald’s reached out. And they wanted to redo the classic song, and I thought that was awesome. And very few artists get the opportunity to do these types of things, so it was actually a no-brainer.
What are some of your fondest memories as a McDonald’s crew member?
My mom was a very business-savvy woman. I had long, black braids back then. When I was about to go in for my interview, my mom was like “Oh, you can’t have braids, you have to look professional if you want to get hired.” She took me to the barbershop, and she made me cut off my hair.
I went to the interview, got hired, and on my first day working, everyone had long hair. I remember coming home to my mom crying and being like “You made me cut my hair! I would’ve still gotten the job.”
She felt so bad, and she was like “Okay, well let’s do something different.”
And I was like “I don’t have hair,” and then she said “dye it red.”
That’s the origin of my red hair.
And you’ve never shared that before?
You honestly just unlocked that memory in my brain. I forgot all about that.
So you’ve got It’s Us Vol. 1, dropping Friday. It’s the first album with the Concrete Boys crew. What was the process like assembling talent for this collective?
These are my friends. So it wasn’t like I was looking high and low for talent. These were friends that I’ve made along the way. The most important thing to me is my friendships — and trying to bring everyone up to a level of success so they can provide for their families is the goal. Plus, I’ve always just loved the idea of groups and crews.
How do you envision your label Concrete Rekordz growing, say five or 10 years from now?
Man, that’s more than enough time. You could say one year from now. But five or 10 years from now? That’s much more time than any artist needs to become successful. I want to make sure I say that. With today’s time, and internet [platforms], six months is all you need. But in five years, I plan to have four moguls, doing their own things, starting their own labels.
Your last album, Let’s Start Here was a sonic risk, as you experimented with psychedelic sounds. What kind of sounds are you exploring for your next project?
I can’t tell you, my guy. But what I will tell you is that I’m definitely not done taking risks. I can’t say what I’m doing next, but I can say that I’m not done taking risks. That wasn’t a one-and-done.
You also have an album with James Blake coming out soon. What can you tell us about that?
I’m really excited about it. It’s really amazing. When [artists] make collab projects, I think a lot of times, they don’t access the full extent of what could be. Me and James really connected and just created a brotherhood. We made a really special project that is far beyond both of us, and I’m super excited for it to come out.
Can you give us a hint as to when it’s going to drop?
It keeps getting pushed back, man. It was it was supposed to come out this month. But I don’t know if it will. But it’s done. Mixed and mastered.
So earlier this week, you said that some rappers are angry because they’re “ugly as f*ck,” and therefore, lack confidence. What would you say is the key to maintaining confidence?
[Laughs] Well, I was just talking sh*t. But, I don’t know, man. I don’t take things too serious. I enjoy the life that I was given and try to stay stress-free. I’m well aware of the blessings and the cards I was dealt, and I’m just grateful. I think I can I can only speak for myself when I say that it’s very easy to be happy.
It’s been about a decade since you moved from Atlanta to New York to pursue music. As an artist, and now, the owner of your own label, what would you say is the biggest thing you’ve learned in your career?
Staying true to yourself and not letting anyone’s negative comments bring you down. The negative side of the internet isn’t real. It’s not a real place. It’s all just trolls and make-believe. It’s not real, it doesn’t translate over into the real world.
During the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend in February, GloRilla posed alongside Milwaukee Bucks All-Star point guard Damian Lillard and posted the photo on X (formerly Twitter). The since-deleted posts read, “Who n**** dis is? Cause I want him #GetEmGlo” and “Whoever she is can’t whoop me so I really dgaf.”
On Wednesday, April 3, GloRilla appeared on the latest episode of Club Shay Shay. Host Shannon Sharpe acknowledged GloRilla had “shot one of those Steph Curry shots” in the form of flirtation toward Dame and asked, “Did it go in?” GloRilla awkwardly giggled before expertly avoiding actually answering the question, saying, “The halfcourt shot? You know, at the end of the day, the day gon’ end.” Sharpe’s last-ditch effort (“It went in”) to get an admission was met with more ambiguous giggles.
In early March, TMZ asked Lillard about whether he had “seen GloRilla shoot her shot.” Lillard chuckled and said, “Man, shout-out to GloRilla, man.” But when asked whether he had reached out or had any contact with Glo, Lillard politely shut it down, saying, “No comment, my brother.”
Lillard was traded from Portland to Milwaukee last October. Days later, the eight-time All-Star and his wife, Kay’La Lillard, filed for divorce. The former couple were college sweethearts and share three children. In February, Lillard described the past several months as “the hardest transition in my life, all things considered,” as per Yahoo Sports’ Vincent Goodwill.
LeBron James impressed Metro Boomin when he rapped along to Kendrick Lamar’s “Like That” verse during warmups ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers’ win over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday, March 31. GloRilla heaped more praise onto the ever-expanding LeBron James Praise Pile during the latest episode of Club Shay Shay.
Host Shannon Sharpe asked for GloRilla’s reaction to James posting a video of him dancing and rapping along to her February single “Yeah Glo!” The Memphis rapper explained that she found out about it while getting a massage and noticing her phone “blow up” on the “little massage table” and initially blowing it off before finally looking and seeing that “everybody [was] calling me, like, ‘LeBron just posted your song!’”
“LeBron knew the words! I can watch LeBron rap songs and not know the words for real. He knew ‘Yeah Glo!’ That was good for him because he don’t be knowing songs for real. … Nobody can tell me ish. I got LeBron co-sign and I got Shannon co-signing me.” – @GloTheofficialpic.twitter.com/w2Jo3zIW0Q
GloRilla said she “instantly reposted it,” and then she hit up Rodeo Drive to get something to wear to the Lakers’ game that night because “this is one of the best — not one of the best — this is the best player in the league right now.” Glo paused to clarify that the late Kobe Bryant is her favorite player, but James is second.
Sharpe rained on her parade, saying, “He ain’t know not one word.” GloRilla countered with, “He knew the words! He did! I done watched LeBron rap songs and not know the words for real. He knew ‘Yeah Glo!’ He probably ain’t say, like, certain words, but that was good for him because he don’t be knowing songs for real. He knew more words than usual when he was singing ‘Yeah Glo!’”
LeBron James had a big game the other night, when his Los Angeles Lakers bested the Brooklyn Nets 116-104. He wound up with 40 points on 13-of-17 shooting from the field, including nine three-pointers (which ties a career high). Metro Boomin couldn’t help but notice that James’ big night came after the NBA star was spotted rapping along to Kendrick Lamar’s verse on “Like That,” a highlight from Metro and Future’s new album We Don’t Trust You.
That verse, of course, made waves when it first dropped for apparent disses against J. Cole and Drake. Drake caught wind of LeBron’s moment with the song and had a subtle reaction: He liked an Instagram post sharing the video.
This comes after Drake used Instagram to offer up with some took as other reactions to the song. In one post, he wrote, “They rather go to war with me than admit they are their own worst enemy [crying laughing emoji].” He said in another, “I could never sell ya’ll out to sell my latest work. Never do you bad out the blue but I’m down to make it worse.”
So, at this point, unless he’s saving it for a diss track or something, it looks like these subtle shots may be all we get from Drake in terms of a “Like That” response.
Sunday (March 31) was a good day for Metro Boomin. His and Future’s collaborative album We Don’t Trust Youdebuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 — Metro’s fourth-career No. 1 album and Future’s ninth, according to Billboard. The album earned 2024’s largest week by any album, with 251,000 equivalent US album units, as per Luminate.
Hours later, ESPN’s Omar Raja recorded LeBron James rapping Kendrick Lamar’s verse on “Like That” during the Los Angeles Lakers’ warmups ahead of their game at the Brooklyn Nets. James, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, proceeded to do what he does in the Lakers’ 116-104 win. The 39-year-old logged 40 points on 13-of-17 from the field with nine three-pointers. Per ESPN, James tied his career high for threes in a game and joined Michael Jordan “as the only players in NBA history with multiple games of 40 points or more after turning 39.”
Metro Boomin was delighted, posting on X (formerly Twitter), “bro was warming up to Like That then went 9/10 from 3 and 13/17 for 40 points [exploding head emoji, three steam-from-nose emojis, flexing emoji] #WEDONTTRUSTYOU.”
By the time James was spotted spitting “Like That,” he and the Lakers had already run onto the court to “Ya Ya” from Beyoncé’s newly released Cowboy Carter, as seen in a video posted by Jasmine (@hausofJazzy) on X.
LEBRON JAMES AND THE LAKERS CAME OUT TO “YA YA” BY BEYONCÉ FROM #COWBOYCARTER
Cowboy Carter debuting at anything lower than No. 1 next week would be a bigger upset than James’ Lakers winning the West, and then it can almost already be penciled in that Metro and Future’s We Don’t Trust You sequel album will recapture No. 1 after its April 12 release date.
NBA teams like to keep fans entertained during halftime. While most folks use the break in the game as a chance to go to the bathroom or get something from the concessions stand, teams will put some form of entertainment out there. Sometimes, it’s an act that goes from stadium to stadium and does the same thing — plenty of fans love Red Panda, while I’m personally a big fan of that dude who has people play Simon Says.
Every now and then, teams will put on a mini-concert, which the Atlanta Hawks decided to do on Thursday night during their game against the Boston Celtics. The team called up Atlanta native CeeLo Green, who performed his smash hit single from 2010, “F*ck You.” The catch: CeeLo didn’t censor himself, so instead of performing the more radio-friendly version of the song (“Forget You”), he really let loose.
The Hawks did seem to enjoy it, as they shouted out CeeLo on Twitter after his performance.
As for the game, this is a rematch of a game we saw earlier this week. Despite trailing by as many as 30 points in that one, Atlanta stunned the best team in the Eastern Conference, 120-118. As for how things were going on Thursday night before the half, the Hawks were once again competitive despite the Celtics taking a 63-59 lead into the locker room.
(@hausofJazzy) 
