Isaiah Thomas Signs With The Lakers: Details

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This offseason, Isaiah Thomas was on a mission to get an NBA contract. He scored 81 points in a pro am game and it was becoming clear that he still had the goods to play in the NBA. Unfortunately, after a failed stint with Golden State, Thomas was forced to watch from the sidelines, until this week when he signed a G-League deal with the Grand Rapids Gold, who represent the Denver Nuggets.

In Thomas’ first game with the Gold, he scored a whopping 42 points, which eventually got the attention of teams all across the NBA. In fact, today, it was revealed that Thomas has signed a contract with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Thomas was linked to the Lakers throughout the summer, however, a deal never came to fruition. Now, Thomas has been signed to a 10-day contract where he will be eager to show the purple and gold that he can play at the highest level of competition.

There is no guarantee that Thomas will remain on the roster, however, this is still a huge step forward for his career. He has played for the Lakers in the past, and he is also familiar with LeBron. This time around, however, he is hungrier than ever before.

Astroworld Festival Victims Suffocated To Death: Report

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The ten people who died at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival in Houston, Texas last month all reportedly suffocated to death, according to a medical examiner. The report, shared by TMZ, claims that the ten deceased festivalgoers had their lungs crushed during the deadly crowd surge, suffering from compression asphyxia. 

In the details of the report, it is also noted that each of the ten victims was pronounced dead at local hospitals. In the initial reports from the festival, it was suggested that somebody may have been injecting people with drugs by stabbing them with needles. That theory was quickly dispelled and in the medical examiner’s report, it is revealed that only one of the victims had a “contributory cause” to their death from the combined effects of cocaine, methamphetamine, and ethanol.


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An investigation remains open into who is to blame for the deaths of the ten victims, and hundreds of lawsuits have been filed against Travis Scott, Live Nation, and even Drake, who performed at the festival with Scott. On Wednesday, forty days after the tragic crowd surge, the stage was finally taken down at NRG Park, where the festival was held.

Travis has issued multiple statements addressing the tragedy, claiming that he did not know the severity of people’s injuries until the following day. He spoke with Charlamagne Tha God in his first interview since Astroworld, offering to help the families affected. Earlier today, it was announced that Travis is leading a new effort about concert safety with government officials. Read more about that here.

Rest in peace to the ten victims of the Astroworld Festival.


Image via HNHH — Travis Scott performing at Astroworld Festival 2021

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Issa Rae Includes Thundercat, Raphael Saadiq, SiR, And Others In Her Favorite NPR Tiny Desk Concerts

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Issa Rae
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Surely, we’ve all gone down the NPR Tiny Desk Concert rabbit hole. There’s something about seeing favorite artists (and new discoveries) in a highly intimate setting that feels special, even if we’re not there and just watching from our screens at home. The series has become a ubiquitous part of pop culture and lately, NPR has been asking celebrities to list out their favorite performances. Today, Insecure star, writer, and creator Issa Rae checked in to share her picks.

She led off her list with Raphael Saadiq, who is not only the composer for the musical score of Insecure, he’s also certifiably one of the best live acts in hip-hop and R&B. “When he linked up with Lucky Daye for “You Should Be Here” was just phenomenal,” Rae said as one of her highlight moments of the performance. She also counts Thundercat as one of her favorite Tiny Desks and in goofy Issa Dee fashion (her character in Insecure) she explains that “The lyrics [to his song FriendZone’] are lowkey kind of dumb. But to hear it sound so melodic was just like a treat for me.”

She goes on to talk about Sampha and how his music was featured in Insecure season 2, and that she “was introduced to Sampha by Solange when she was doing the music for season one, so he has a special place in my heart.” She tips the cap to SiR (“because, you know, Inglewood”), and rounds out her six with Baby Rose and Nick Hakim, who’ve both had songs featured on Insecure.

Read Issa Rae’s full comments on her favorite Tiny Desk Concerts here.

LPB Poody Boasts ‘I’m The One’ In An Assertive ‘UPROXX Sessions’ Performance

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Orlando rapper LPB Poody might be at the start of his career, but his performance and energy are already off-the-charts, as demonstrated by his propulsive performance of his newly released single “I’m The One” for UPROXX Sessions. Packed to bursting with boastful gun talk and hot-blooded, me-against-the-world truculence, the thumping track lets Poody fully engage and bring his hardened outlook to vivid life as he holds eye contact with the camera.

Fully committing to music in 2016, Poody’s perseverance marks a 180-degree course change from his early life, when he was in and out of juvenile detention. Although he’s still facing a probation violation charge from earlier this year, Poody’s music illustrates exactly why he felt he needed to turn his life around — and the passion with which he raps highlights how wise a decision it was. Like many artists of his generation, he can credit his career taking off this year to TikTok, where his 2019 single “Address It” has become a favorite on the app, driving streams elsewhere and propelling him to a new starting point, where he has the chance to leave the violent past behind and embrace a much brighter future.

Watch LPB Poody’s UPROXX Sessions performance of “I’m The One” above.

UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too.

Ye Calls Himself ‘The Template’ For Drake And Travis Scott

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Ye Kanye West 2021
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Ye (aka Kanye West) recently had a conversation with British-German artist Tino Sehgal for German culture magazine 032c, and he really said a lot of noteworthy things during the chat. He revealed that he plans to be “homeless in a year” because he’s turning his homes into churches. Ye also noted that he’s working on a performance piece called The Funeral Rehearsal Of Kanye West. Elsewhere during the interview, he also dropped some names and called himself the “template” for some major artists.

Ye said:

“Moses could do everything his army could do, but he couldn’t free his people without the army. And you know, all these leaders, all these people who created the templates — Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, George Lucas — were crazy as f*ck but influenced so many people. I’m just saying, I’m the template. Kanye West is the template for Drake and Travis and…”

He said something similar elsewhere in the conversation, noting, “At this point, every art piece I do is a window, an app, for human beings. 808s & Heartbreak was the app for Drake and The Weeknd, and The Funeral Rehearsal Of Kanye West will be the app for others.”

The interview is print-only and is included as “a special edition booklet” in Issue #40 of 032c, so grab a copy for yourself here.

Damian Lillard Addresses Blazers Struggles Amid Trade Rumors

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Heading into this season, many analysts new the Portland Trail Blazers would be a bit of a mess. With Damian Lillard trade rumors running rampant and a rookie head coach in Chauncey Billups, there was little hope that this team would be a contender in the Western Conference. So far, all of these predications have come true as the Blazers are 11-18 which is good enough for 11th in the standings. As it stands, they wouldn’t even be eligible for the play-in round.

Now, trade rumors surrounding the superstar point guard are back, and Lillard is speaking out about it. In a report from Marc Spears of The Undefeated, Lillard admitted that this season has been difficult, however, he has absolutely no interest in abandoning the team.

Damian Lillard

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“We have a new offense. A new style. A new way of playing,” Lillard said. “Me being the leader, I have to overly buy in. I have to show I am committed to that regardless of what it looks like for me, even if I’m struggling offensively to find my spots, to find my way in the offense. Even if I’m missing shots, I got to be the person to show the most buy-in to get everyone to buy in. People are saying, ‘Dame is frustrated.’ I am frustrated with losing and not playing my best. But that doesn’t mean I’m sour on my team and I’m looking elsewhere. … That has never been me. This isn’t my first time being in a tough situation.”

Lillard has always been about “the grind” and it doesn’t appear as though that’s going to stop anytime soon. Lillard could very easily give up on the Blazers as he has all of the leverage in the world. For now, however, Lillard is poised to be a Blazer until retirement.

Damian Lillard

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Freddie Gibbs Has 2 New Songs In “GTA Online: The Contract”

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It has been an eventful week for Freddie Gibbs and not all of it has been good, but he’s closing out the week with a focus on his music. Following his alleged fight with Jim Jones at a fancy steakhouse in Miami, which prompted DJ Akademiks to taunt the rapper and celebrate on social media, Gangsta Gibbs has a couple of songs that are featured in the brand new update from GTA Online, called “The Contract.”

We previously reported that the rapper would be included in the game’s soundtrack, as well as Offset, YG, and more. Now that the update is officially live, hip-hop fans have been commenting on the new music, including six new songs from the legendary Dr. Dre. As for Gibbs’ contribution to the game, he’s got at least two songs on the soundtrack. One is called “Pick Up The Phone” featuring Juicy J and the other is “Miami Vice” featuring Pusha-T and Kevin Cossom.

The songs are presently only available in the game, but there’s a chance they get uploaded to streaming services at some point in the near future. Some users have also uploaded the tracks to YouTube, but those will surely get copyright strikes in no time. 

If you’ve heard the two new Freddie Gibbs songs in GTA Online: The Contract, let us know what you think of them in the comments.


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Warner Music Group Acquires 300 Entertainment In New Deal

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Warner Music Group has acquired 300 Entertainment, the independent music entity comprised of headliners, Young Thug and his label Young Stoner Life (YSL), Megan Thee Stallion, and many more.

300 co-founder and CEO Kevin Liles considers Warner to be the perfect home for his artists and team. The acquisition is a new opportunity to invest in the growth and impact of the brand. As a part of the deal, the enterprise will also be able to maintain its independence and remain at its headquarters in New York.”Independence is in our DNA and the team at Warner is like family, which makes this a natural evolution for us to do our bigger family business,” Liles told Variety. With a relationship that has already been established over the years, co-founder Lyor Cohen, assures that this is a monumental move, “wonderful to see a good idea realized. 300 is a way of life and is in very good hands.”

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300 was founded in 2012 by Liles, Lyor Cohen, Roger Gold, and Todd Moscowitz. Since its launch, Atlantic Records has handled all distribution, and this acquisition is a reflection of an already solid relationship between the two entities. Over time, they have built a lengthy roster including Gunna, SNOT, Tee Grizzley, and most recently, Mary J. Blige’s, Mary Jane Productions. Prior to co-founding 300, Cohen served as the chief exec for WMG and Liles will now transition into the appointed chairman & CEO across both 300 and Elektra Music Group, which is an extension of Atlantic.  

While the press announcement did not disclose the amount of the deal, it is rumored to be around $400 million. By bringing 300 into Warner Music Group, there will be a greater focus on nurturing potential superstar talent across all genres. 

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