With the Marvel Cinematic Universe expanding further into television, fans are hopeful that the MCU is brewing up a WandaVision spinoff series about Agatha Harkness, who was played by standout star Kathryn Hahn.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, the Emmy-nominated actress was asked if everyone’s favorite nosy neighbor will be getting her last laugh on the Disney+ streaming service. But all Hahn was willing to part with was, “Anything can happen.”
“Listen, I don’t even know if there is such a thing as a WandaVision spinoff,” she continued, referencing reports from earlier this month that one was underway. “All I can say is, I love Agatha and, as we know, anything can happen in Marvel. So who knows.”
Reports of a potential spinoff sparked in early October when Deadline seemingly confirmed a show about Agatha Harkness was in the works.
Fans remain hopeful the rumors are true, citing the character’s rich comic history. Agatha made her debut 51 years ago in the 1970 comic book Fantastic Four #94 — giving showrunners plenty of material to translate onto the small screen, and maybe even the big screen.
It is rumored that Agatha will make her movie debut soon, with fans speculating about a possible Agatha cameo in 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness because it features Scarlet Witch, played by WandaVision star Elizabeth Olsen, as a main character.
A cryptocurrency based on — but not licensed by — the smash Netflix show Squid Game is smashing expectations.
The digital currency SQUID began trading Tuesday at just $0.01235. As of around 12:30 p.m. Friday, it was worth $10.41 — a gain of more than 82,000%.
That’s a market cap potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars. But there’s a catch.
For those traders with visions of the show’s giant piggy bank, take note: the crypto trading site CoinMarketCap warned potential investors, “We have received multiple reports that the users are not able to sell this token in [the online crypto exchange] Pancakeswap. Please exercise caution while trading!”
The New York Post notes the issue might be a mechanism within the currency’s creators that doesn’t allow so-called “pump and dump” activity for it.
So why was SQUID created? Evidently for a crypto-based online tournament called the Squid Game Project, which launches in November and promises to replicate the games on the popular show, with its crypto both required to play and at stake as prizes.
Unlike the show, however, SQUID’s organizers note, “we do not provide deadly consequences” for losing, declaring, “Your experience will only reflect on the joy of winning rewards and sorrow of losing money when the game [is] failed.”
Also unlike the show Squid Game, the jackpot isn’t limited to the $38.5 million. “The more people join, the larger [the] reward pool will be,” organizers promise.
AC/DC‘s “Thunderstruck” video has officially struck one billion views on YouTube.
The clip is the first AC/DC video to reach the milestone. It’s also one of the few ’90s videos to hit the one billion views marks, along with Nirvana‘s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Metallica‘s “Nothing Else Matters,” Guns N’ Roses‘ “November Rain,” The Cranberries‘ “Zombie,” 4 Non Blondes‘ “What’s Up,” and Whitney Houston‘s “I Will Always Love You.
The “Thunderstuck” video, which was uploaded to YouTube in November 2012, captures a live performance of the song, which was the lead single from AC/DC’s 1990 album The Razors Edge. It memorably features a unique, close-up angle of Angus Young‘s guitar playing.
“Our video for Thunderstruck just passed a billion views on YouTube,” AC/DC tweeted in response to the news. “Thank you fans!”
AC/DC released their latest album, Power Up, last November. It reunites the surviving members of the band’s classic Back in Black lineup, and is dedicated to their late guitarist, Malcolm Young.
Today marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Duane Allman, the co-founder and masterful slide-guitar player of The Allman Brothers Band.
Allman was killed in a motorcycle crash in Macon, Georgia, a few months after the group released its classic live album At Fillmore East. He was 27.
At the time of his passing, Duane had established himself as one of rock’s most highly regarded guitarists. Prior to The Allman Brothers Band’s formation, Duane played with his brother Gregg in a number of groups, including The Allman Joys and The Hour Glass, the latter of which released two studio albums.
In 1968, Duane began working as a session musician at the legendary FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and went on to perform on recordings by artists including Aretha Franklin, Laura Nyro, Wilson Pickett, Otis Rush, Percy Sledge, Boz Scaggs and Delaney & Bonnie.
The Allman Brothers Band were formed in 1969 and released their self-titled debut album that year. Combining rock, blues and jazz, the group quickly became known for their captivating concerts, which included extended jams that showcased the guitar interplay between Duane and Dickey Betts.
The band’s second album, Idlewild South, was released in September 1970 and broke into Billboard 200’s top 40. That year, Duane also contributed slide guitar to the only studio album by Eric Clapton‘s short-lived band Derek & the Dominos, Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.
The Allman Brothers’ breakthrough album was At Fillmore East, which was released in July 1971 and reached #13 on the Billboard 200. It’s widely considered one of the greatest live rock albums of all time.
Duane also is featured on most of The Allmans’ hit 1972 album Eat a Peach, which was released about four months after his passing.
YeardleySmith has not only been the iconic voice of Lisa Simpson since The Simpsons began more than 32 seasons ago, but she’s also the producer and co-host of her hit podcast, Small Town Dicks.
The true-crime series is co-hosted by two anonymous identical twin detectives Dave and Dan — the latter of whom is married to Smith — and investigates big crimes that happen in small towns. Smith tells ABC Audio the series is a fun transition from Simpsons.
“I mean, it’s it sort of couldn’t be more opposite,” she says, before switching to Lisa’s voice, “‘Lisa Simpson is, even when she’s having a bad day, she finds the silver lining in the dark cloud.'” Whereas “Small Town Dicks is murder and mayhem, and what’s the worst possible thing a person could do to another person?”
Smith adds, “People ask me, ‘why do you think people are obsessed with true crime, and particularly women?’ I think it’s multifold, obviously, but I do think that people like the good guys to win,” she says.
“And even as we have this really relevant conversation about policing in America, at the end of the day, if somebody is breaking into your house who you’re going to call right, you’re going to call 9-1-1.”
The Simpsons just ran its annual pre-Halloween “Treehouse of Horror” episode, which Smith says the cast likes as much as the fans do. “[Y]ou get to go even further, and you get to parody some of your favorite stories, favorite shows, genres, whatever it is for us as the actors, it’s so fun,” she explains.
Smith even spilled some tea. “We actually just recorded the next ‘Treehouse of Horror’ already because they’re so labor-intensive for the writers and the animators. There is a…a fantastic parody of Westworld where Lisa becomes Bart and basically like takes on his bratty, bratty, and Bart becomes the goody two shoes and the world is falling apart. So, yeah, it’s pretty good.”
(WASHINGTON) — The Biden administration on Friday said it would make another attempt to end the “Remain in Mexico” protocols, a Trump administration initiative that forced tens of thousands of asylum seekers back into Mexican border towns to await their court dates in the U.S.
The administration has been under pressure from immigrant advocacy groups to end the policy but has met with legal roadblocks.
In a briefing before the announcement, Department of Homeland Security officials told reporters they had reassessed the policy, also known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, and Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas once again determined it was appropriate to end it despite acknowledging its impact in reducing unauthorized migration. One official pointed out that multiple factors can drive migration, but based on the department’s own assessment, the protocols had been effective in deterring border crossing attempts.
“In looking at the data from 2019, there is a fairly clear reduction in encounters at the land border starting around the time that the MPP was implemented across the entire border,” one DHS official said. “That said, you know, correlation is not necessarily causation.”
However, the officials said the humanitarian consequences outweigh the potential benefits of reduced illegal entries. Humanitarian organizations have documented high rates of murder, kidnapping and extortion on top of squalid conditions facing those subjected to “Remain in Mexico.”
A new policy memo to DHS officials dives deeper into the decision-making process by considering potential costs to states as well as potential improvements that could be made to MPP. However, the officials maintained that certain issues with returning migrants back across an international boundary will persist. Immigrant advocacy organizations have been principally concerned with the lack of access to legal services for migrants who are sent back.
“Once individuals are returned across an international border, there’s limited opportunities for the United States to be able to affect their safety and security once they’re in the control of another sovereign nation,” one DHS official said.
The acknowledgment of MPP’s deterrence capabilities is a significant concession for the Biden administration. For months, Republicans have condemned the administration for repealing “Remain in Mexico,” citing the decision as a driving force behind the record number of arrests at the border.
Biden suspended “Remain in Mexico” on his first day in office and Secretary Mayorkas attempted to officially end it in June. A federal judge ordered the Biden administration to reinstate the protocols last August in response to a legal challenge by the state of Texas and Missouri. The Justice Department continues to fight the order and hopes an appellate court will reverse it or remand the decision back to the district court.
Embedded in the district court’s order to reinstate was a suggestion that the administration needs to be capable of either detaining every migrant who attempts an illegal entry or subject them to “Remain in Mexico.” MPP was implemented by the Trump administration in 2019 and, as DHS officials point out, Congress has never provided enough funds to detain every unauthorized migrant.
Much of the administration’s ability continue the practice relies on cooperation from the Mexican government, which was initially opposed to the idea, but has since considered conditions under which it could be reinstated. Talks with Mexican officials are ongoing, DHS officials said.
Depending on whether the Mexican government will agree, the Biden administration is on track to reinstate “Remain in Mexico” by mid-November. Oral arguments are scheduled in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on Nov. 2.
Drake is bringing together twelve of the top battle rappers for a special competition that will be livestreamed on Saturday. He has teamed with the Ultimate Rap League to host Drake’s Til Death Do Us Part.
“I really put this event together because so much time we spend debating in sport, in competition, what would happen if this person had to go up against this person,” Drizzy said in a promo video.
“A lot of the time our debates stem from our dream matchups, and this event, fortunately for us in battle rap, is that exact debate coming to life,” Drake continues. “These are battles that are fueled by rivalry, hate, a true chance to silence all the talking and definitely set up moments that will rewrite legacy and rewrite history for some people.”
The event continues Drake’s month-long birthday celebration, and marks the Ultimate Rap League’s 12th anniversary.
“Drake isn’t just a casual battle rap fan and has been a supporter behind the URL movement for years,” Ultimate Rap League CEO Troy Mitchell says in a statement. “Over the last 20 months, he’s helped our brand grow by facilitating our partnership with Caffeine, which allows us to stream our premium content for free to our fanbase.”
“Drake’s Til Death Do Us Part is not just a birthday celebration for our friend,” Mitchell continues. “It is a shifting of the culture and is going to be the biggest event ever witnessed in battle rap history, bigger even than Summer Madness 2.”
Drake’s Til Death Do Us Part airs live on URL’s Caffeine channel on Saturday, October 30th at 6 p.m. EDT/3 p.m. PDT and will stream exclusively on URL’s app,
Jake Owen, Ronnie Dunn and Texas-based singer Jake Worthington take the wheel on “Jonesin’,” the newest release off of the Hardy-curated Hixtape Vol. 2.
The track — which Florida Georgia Line band mate Brian Kelley co-wrote with Nashville hitmakers Ernest K. Smith and Corey Crowder — is a feel-good ode to a couple of the titans of the country genre.
“Well, I’m jonesin’ for some Jones / I’m hankerin’ for some Hank / And I’mma two-step across the dance floor / With a little lightning in my drink,” the trio sing in the chorus. “And I’m out here for a good time / Yeah, I’m trying to find some love / Gonna keep this tractor rolling / ‘Til they kick me out the country club…”
Of course, those lyrics are clever tips of the hat to songs from the Possum himself, George Jones, with another honorable mention for another country great, Hank Williams.
“Jonesin’” is the latest release off of Hixtape Vol. 2, which drops in full this December. A collaborations project also featuring the likes of Jon Pardi, Jimmie Allen, Dierks Bentley and many more, the Hixtape is a follow-up to Hardy’s 2019 duets project, Hixtape Vol 1.
Speaking of Hardy, he’s got plans to make his late-night TV debut next month. He’ll make a stop on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, where he’ll perform his current single, “Give Heaven Some Hell.” That spot is set for November 8, just a few days after the 2021 CMA Awards, where Hardy’s nominated for New Artist of the Year.
The lawsuit between Bad Wolves and the band’s former frontman, Tommy Vext, has been settled, Billboard reports.
Vext, who fronted Bad Wolves for their first two albums, parted ways with the group earlier this year in January. In July, Vext filed a lawsuit against Allen Kovac, the CEO of Bad Wolves’ record label, Better Noise Music, alleging that Kovac had orchestrated his exit from the band due to his political views, including his support for former President Donald Trump and his stance against the Black Lives Matter movement. Vext also alleged that Kovac used racial slurs in conversations with him.
Bad Wolves and Better Noise then countered with their own lawsuit, saying Vext infringed upon copyright in using his former band’s name to promote his own solo tour.
Now, in a joint statement to Billboard, the parties declare that they’ve “collectively resolved their disputes.”
“This is a settlement with no winners and no losers; it’s beneficial to everyone in order to move on and bury the hatchet,” the statement reads. “This is a new beginning and a bright future for all those concerned.”
It continues, “We’re all excited to get back to what’s important, and that’s the music. Bad Wolves and Tommy wish each other the best going forward, and ask that their fans respect this decision.”
The result comes at a fitting time, since Bad Wolves’ new album, Dear Monsters, is out today. The record is the group’s first with new lead singer Daniel “DL” Laskiewicz.
The earnest track finds frontman Jacoby Shaddix singing, “I’m dying to believe/That we’re more alike than we think/That we’re all the same underneath.” You can listen to it now via digital outlets.
“Dying to Believe” follows the recently released tunes “Kill the Noise” and “Swerve,” featuring FEVER 333‘s Jason Aalon Butler and rapper Sueco. All three are set to appear on the next Papa Roach album, due out in 2022.
Papa Roach’s most recent record is 2019’s Who Do You Trust?
