When you think about it, a housewarming party is really just the after-party of the homebuying journey. And every after-party is better when it’s headlined by hip-hop legend T-Pain.
To prove it, UPROXX and Zillow threw an unforgettable move-in day celebration for first-time homebuyers Lex and Hannah, complete with a backyard pop-up concert featuring one of the world’s biggest rap icons. While the couple put down roots in their beloved hometown of Austin, TX, we put down a DIY dancefloor on their back lawn, building a stage worthy of a GRAMMY-winning artist and an intimate outdoor venue for the pair’s friends and family to enjoy. And when the vibes are this good, you’ve got to capture them.
In the video above, Lex and Hannah share how Zillow streamlined the home buying process so they could get to the life moments that really matter, like making memories with friends in your dream home while T-Pain performs in your backyard while your neighbors wonder if you’re somehow famous.
Stay tuned to this space to learn more about Lex and Hannah’s homebuying journey. This is just the beginning.
The music, drinks, and shared passion for creativity were flowing this weekend as UPROXX Studios and Hennessy hosted The Sound + Vision Awards, a first-of-its-kind awards show honoring the artists driving music culture forward.
Taking place at will.i.am’s FYI Campus, the event was packed with celebrity guests and music tastemakers — gathered together to celebrate the behind-the-scenes visionaries who drive music culture through music video direction, stage choreography, merch design, and so much more.
We’re talking Tino Schaedler, the creative director behind Travis Scott and SAULT’s futuristic on-stage designs; Adrian Martinez, the go-to campaign collaborator of Peso Pluma and Bad Bunny; Sean Kusanagi, the mind behind ODESZA’s stage show; Tyler, the Creator’s Camp Flog Gnaw team; and Eric Haze, the artist imagining music culture’s most recognizable logos.
To kick off the event, UPROXX threw a pre-show party fueled by bespoke Hennessy cocktails, eclectic bites crafted by culinary design studio AnanasAnanas, caviar bumps, and stunning floral ice sculptures. Guests mingled while enjoying musical performances from Isaiah Collier and J. Rocc before comedian and host Reggie Watts opened the show, setting the stage for an electrifying celebration filled with surprise appearances and some inspiring storytelling that all shined a light on the often unsung creative heroes in the world of music. LL Cool J stopped by to hand out a Lifetime Achievement award to Haze while ODESZA’s live show lead, Sean Kusanagi, gushed about the privilege of getting to make art that moves people.
Dive deeper into the nominees and honorees by visiting UPROXX’s Sound + Vision platform, and stay tuned for more looks from the inaugural show.
The evening will be soundtracked by electronic producer and curator Le Chev, feature soulful R&B duo THEBROSFRESH, and be headlined by country star Dasha. The event invites fans to enjoy the city’s singular music culture before it ushers in the next installment of Austin City Limits and gives attendees a chance to see Dasha in an intimate setting ahead of her headlining festival set that same weekend.
Attendees can enjoy Texas-style must-haves, including free Sparkling Ice cocktails, a barbeque, taco, and quesadilla station, flash tattoos, Texas-style lawn games, and more.
While the event is free and open to the public, an RSVP is required for entry. To attend, you must be approved on Partiful, after which entry will be on a first-come, first-served basis until the venue reaches capacity. RSVP for free here.
A couple of months back, Uproxx and Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey teamed up with Benny Blanco for “Skrew The Usual” — a must-watch dissection of Benny’s superpowered creative approach.
But Benny isn’t the type of artist to be pinned down to just one thing, the producer, songwriter and chef is multi-talented — so in addition to talking about how he crafted some of his most beloved hits of the past decade, we also got to talking about his work in the kitchen. That conversation led us to Benny’s Sticky Icky Sundae (as well as a custom cocktail that is also a must-try).
So what is this sundae? It’s an addictive whiskey-infused banana split that has easily become our dessert of the summer.
The sundae features brûléed bananas, Salt & Straw’s famous “Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons” ice cream, a Skrewbal Whiskey-infused magic shell, and Skrewball Whiskey-soaked cherries and whipped cream. Trust us, it tastes even better than it sounds. So to help level up your summer and close the season’s final full month in delicious style, we’ll walk you through how to make Benny’s Sticky Icky Sundae.
But before we talk about the sundae, we need to get an essential ingredient out of the way first — the Skrewy magic shell.
Skrewy Magic Shell
Uproxx
Ingredients:
4 oz. natural peanut butter (any brand you love)
4 oz. coconut oil
3 Tbsp Skrewball Whiskey
The Skrewy Magic Shell is the essential peanut butter and coconut drizzle that pulls all the ingredients together and makes this decadent treat so addicting. It also levels up this simple dessert to gourmet status. Luckily, it’s fairly easy to make and will have you feeling like Carmy Berzatto.
Method:
Combine all three ingredients in a mixing bowl into fully emulsified
Pour into a squeeze bottle
Fully cool prior to use
Bam, you’ve just made delicious magic. On to the sundae!
Benny’s Sticky Icky Sundae
Uproxx
Ingredients:
1 Brûléed banana cut into halves
3 scoops of Salt & Straw “Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons” ice cream
Skrewy Magic Shell
Three Skrewball-soaked cherries
Skrewbal candied peanuts to taste
Skrewball-infused whipped cream
Edible gold leaf
A couple of caveats with these ingredients. If you don’t want to go through the trouble of making candied peanuts or Skrewball-infused whipped cream, you can sub those ingredients with regular candied peanuts and whipped cream. But, if you truly want to impress, we suggest you go all the way and make those simple ingredients from scratch.
Any candied peanuts recipe on the internet will work, simply add a dash of Skrewball to the recipe to give them that decadent whiskey goodness. For the whipped cream all you need to do is take some heavy whipping cream, add a glug of Skrewball to taste, whip it together and voila! You’ve got whiskey-infused whipped cream.
For the Skrewball-infused cherries, simply soak maraschino cherries in whiskey overnight.
What You’ll Need
Sundae bowl
Torch
Edible gold leaf
Method
slice a banana lengthwise and brûlée by topping with sugar and torching the top of each halve.
Place 3 scoops of ice cream on top of brûléed banana halves
Top with signature Skrewy magic shell.
Add peanuts.
Top with whipped cream and cherries.
Add gold leaf.
Bottom Line:
This dish is the perfect combination of sweet and rich flavors, resulting in a decadent, addicting (in the best way) and boozy dessert. It’s also deceptively simple, making it a visually impressive dish to whip up for friends!
It’s always a party when Uproxx and Sparkling Ice are in town, and last week was no different. Sponsored by Sparkling Ice, Chicago came alive last Wednesday to celebrate all the sparkling flavors of summer for an exclusive Sparkling Sessions, an authentic and playful collaboration that made for the ultimate party.
Set against the backdrop of the stunning Chicago skyline, Tetto’s rooftop was colorfully lit and filled with fans energized for the festival days that were to follow at Lolla. Those who got in enjoyed an energetic performance by R&B star Justine Skye while Los Angeles comedian and DJ Zack Fox powered the evening with a dose of electronic beats.
Throughout, Tetto’s rooftop brimmed with a vibrant, summer atmosphere complete with custom Sparkling Ice cocktails, fresh food stations, a 3D photo booth, party games, and more.
Check out the official recap video (above) and these photos to see the awesome time guests had and the kind of party Uproxx and Sparkling Ice can throw!
Uproxx is set to celebrate all the flavors of summer with an exclusive Sparkling Sessions event in Chicago this week, just ahead of Lollapalooza. Sponsored by Sparkling Ice, Tetto’s rooftop will come alive on Wednesday, July 31st for an evening full of sips and sounds all against the backdrop of the stunning Chicago skyline.
This exclusive event promises a vibrant atmosphere featuring custom Sparkling Ice cocktails, a variety of food stations, a 3D photo booth, cornhole, human-sized Jenga, custom food stations, paletas, and more. R&B star Justine Skye will perform an exclusive set for attendees. Los Angeles comedian and DJ Zack Fox will also be throwing down beats for a DJ set.
While the event is free and open to the public, an RSVP is required for entry. To attend, you must be approved on Partiful, after which entry will be on a first-come, first-served basis until the venue reaches capacity. Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to celebrate summer in style – RSVP for free here.
It’s been two weeks since ODESZA teamed up with, SETUP, and SNAPDRAGON and completed the largest, most complex, and (above all things) emotional fan experience of the year. Now, we’re celebrating the team’s work by sharing a behind-the-scenes look at the dedication and ambition that brought ECHOES to life.
“We always wanted to build something more and give back to fans,” Harrison Mills told Uproxx.
“All of us want to push the boundaries, all the time,” Clayton Knight continued.
With this focus, ODESZA worked alongside SETUP and SNAPDRAGON to transform the ECHOES concept into a reality: a physical installation welcoming ODESZA fans to the final three shows of their The Last Goodbye tour at the Gorge Amphitheatre in Quincy, WA. What’s amazing is that the collaboration started just two months prior to the reveal at the Gorge. And one thing is now obvious: none of it could have been possible without the power and performance of the SNAPDRAGON X Elite processor.
Every detail relied on the power of SNAPDRAGON, from the visuals and echoing sonics in the installation, the editing of the film itself, to the direct power of ECHOES built on the rogue environment of the Gorge.
“We’ve always had a bigger vision and now technology has gotten to a place where we can execute on a lot of these ideas,” Knight said. “Now seeing the renders on the computer to this finally coming to life, it really makes you think that the impossible is possible.”
The fourth part of this four-part series, “The Making Of ECHOES” (above) is a celebration of this incredible feat of turning ECHOES from a creative storyboard to a reality on the grounds at the Gorge. From the fan moments of pure joy to the crew working through the night making sure every last detail was perfect, and ODESZA’s reaction to ECHOES just hours before the first of their finale shows, it’s a powerfully moving wrap-up to a monumental event.
ODESZA spent the past month bringing their dream installation – ECHOES – to their “The Last Goodbye” Tour finale on July 4th-6th at the Gorge.
For anyone who knows the band, ODESZA clearly isn’t afraid of a little spectacle. Whether it’s bringing in a massive drumline or adding intense pyro to their tours, nothing is off the table for the electronic duo.
The third part of this four-part series, “Power To Move” (above) shows the final week leading up to ODESZA’s finale at the Gorge. The pressure is on to make all the pieces work together, beat the clock (and heat!), and deliver an installation that deeply connects with fans.
Watch to see if the three collaborators — ODESZA, SNAPDRAGON, and SETUP — get everything done in time and build an installation that was truly resonant with 66,000 concert attendees.
“A lot of great musicians have come from Georgia, there is just a spirit that the mountains have that isn’t everywhere else.”
On the latest episode of Uproxx Studios’ new show, The Street I Grew Up On, rising country star Peytan Porter takes us down to Georgia. Dawson County to be exact, the small town that helped shape her artistry, and the site of her most potent memories of trying to find her voice as an artist. With many modern country stars, there is an element to their artistry that can sometimes feel like small-town cosplay, but that isn’t the case with Porter; one quick stroll through her hometown makes it clear that she’s the real deal. A certified country girl.
That’s probably why her lyrics are so potent. When you see the street she grew up on, you can imagine the characters that inhabit her songs, like Barbara Sue from “Lemonade,” sitting on her front porch, all dressed up, hoping to catch a glance from the mailman. You can see Johnny, the son of a drunk Pentecostal preacher, yearning to escape his lot. And escape is something Porter thought she needed too.
“I really had to force my way out of this ball of expectations. I thought that it was saying goodbye to these people and this place forever. They are still welcoming me. They’re still loving me, I don’t think that I ever really knew that was an option. To have the best of both worlds.”
It’s clear that even though Porter left Dawson County for the big country stage, she’s still very much a part of the community, whether it’s through the memories of a neighbor whose late mother would sit on the porch and listen to Porter develop her voice, or through the halls of Dawson County high school, where her name still echoes.
To learn more about Peytan Porter’s hometown experience, watch the latest episode of The Street I Grew Up On above.
It has been just a couple of days since ODESZA bid their final goodbye to fans. Truth be told, we’re still not over it.
To properly close out their The Last Goodbye tour – which saw the prolific electronic duo at the iconic Gorge Amphitheatre in their home state – ODESZA raced against the clock to bring a once-in-a-lifetime immersive installation to their fans.
Tapping SETUP and SNAPDRAGON as collaborators, ECHOES was an incredibly technically ambitious project. Yet, when it came time for 20,000 fans to experience the magic of ECHOES, it all came down to just one emotion: Gratitude.
The sight of ECHOES was one that took your breath away and the sonic scape starred intensely emotional fan voicemails. Walking into and out of the venue through the installation, thousands of ODESZA fans found themselves overwhelmed with gratitude, proud to be a part of such an expansive community. It carried real emotional weight.
While ODESZA has officially said their “last goodbye” for an indefinite amount of time, one thing is certain: the power of that music community is sure to echo for a very long time.
See the awe-striking ECHOES installation with this collection of photos below.
