The original motion picture score for Spike Lee’s upcoming new Vietnam movie Da 5 Bloods has been released – you can listen to it below. The Netflix movie follows a group of four Vietnam veterans – played by Delroy Lindo, Clarke Peters, Norm Lewis and Isiah Whitlock, Jr. – as they return to Vietnam in search of buried treasure and the remains of their squad leader (Chadwick Boseman). The score for Lee’s latest epic features music composed by six-time GRAMMY Award-winning trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard, who most recently worked with Lee on 2018’s BlacKkKlansman. Advertisement “This is an amazing story,” Blanchard said of Da 5 Bloods. “And again, Spike Lee has found a way to take an American tale and turn it into a visually stunning, artistic work of art.” He continued: “In doing so, he has pushed me to reach farther in my orchestrations and in my thematic development.  It was such a pleasure creating music to accompany a story that addresses our individual humanity and the immorality of the Vietnam War.” Listen to the score for Da 5 Bloods below: Da 5 Bloods is due to drop on Netflix on June 12, and a theatrical release was reportedly […]

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden recently suggested that, as the public health emergency deepens, all-mail ballots are “worth looking at, quickly.” Mail-in ballots could be helpful as a stopgap right now, but it’s a slow and inefficient process in a digital age that demands a better answer. In addition, the lack of emergency funding for the United States Postal Service showcases how we cannot depend on this mode of voting for much longer. Although false starts like Iowa’s Shadow app fiasco appear as setbacks, we indeed have the building blocks for online voting; we just need the determination, focus, and execution to bring it to fruition. It’s much too late to consider a transition to online voting in this year’s elections. But we could make the move in time for 2028, with state-wide beta tests in place as early as 2024. Although we may be eager for implementation sooner rather than later, it will take time for us to do this right. The most prominent concern is, of course, security. Online voting must overcome several significant hurdles before it can be rolled out widely. These hurdles include voter ID fraud, a learning curve for users to understand the user interface, […]

On August 21, Eminem’s publishing company Eight Mile Style filed a lawsuit against Spotify, alleging that the streaming company had streamed his songs billions of songs without acquiring the proper licenses. The lawsuit also challenged the constitutionality of the Music Modernization Act passed by Congress in 2018, which makes it more difficult for artists to sue digital services for statutory damages, asserting that the MMA violates the Fifth Amendment. Now, Spotify has filed a third party claim in federal court against the music publisher and label services company Kobalt, which has an administration deal with Eight Mile Style, as Billboard reports. Spotify’s lawsuit claims the streaming service was led to believe by Kobalt that Eight Mile Style’s catalog was included in the direct licensing agreement held between Spotify and Kobalt, and that Spotify has been paying royalties to Kobalt for streams of the catalog for the past nine years. (Eminem himself is not a party in the dispute.) Eight Mile Style alleges in the original complaint that while it granted Kobalt “the right to receive income arising from licenses issued by Eight Mile,” it did not grant “the right or ability to license Eight Mile compositions for digital mechanical licenses, […]

The Toyota RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid has been priced starting under $40,000 and will be available in dealerships this summer. The RAV4 Prime will have an estimated battery-only range of 42 miles. It’ll also be the quickest RAV4, with 302 horsepower and an expected zero-to-60-mph time of 5.7 seconds, according to Toyota. The plug-in-hybrid Prime version of Toyota’s best-selling RAV4 is finally here and will land in dealerships this summer. The 2021 RAV4 Prime will start at $39,220. Toyota says the vehicle can cover an estimated 42 miles on battery power alone. Plus, Toyota claims it will be able to go from zero to 60 mph in 5.7 seconds via a 2.5-liter inline-four engine. Combine that powerplant with the Prime’s electric motors, one powering the rear wheels, and you get a combined 302 horsepower. Not bad for a “green” SUV. The plug-in RAV4 will have all-wheel drive as standard, and the automaker is estimating that it will achieve 94 MPGe combined. The RAV4 Prime will be available in two flavors: SE and XSE. The XSE gets larger 19-inch wheels instead of the 18-inchers on the SE, plus paddle shifters, wireless smartphone charging, and a 9.0-inch touchscreen instead of the SE’s […]

At the same time, Gregory says that activists around the world have argued for something like Twitter’s compromise position. “If you take down either false or harmful content, there’s no way of fighting back against it and counter-intervening—it’s sort of invisible,” he says. Twitter is attempting to strike a delicate balance between two conflicting values. “There’s newsworthiness, there’s interest in knowing what he’s thinking and knowing what he’s saying right as he’s thinking and saying it,” says Tiffany C. Li, a visiting professor at Boston University School of Law. “On the other hand, there’s concern that some of these tweets may have actually harmful real-world implications. When is it newsworthy enough to keep up, versus when is it harmful enough to take down?” There’s no perfect answer here, but Twitter may have found the least bad approach to a nearly impossible situation. “This is the most effective way of Twitter balancing the public interest of constituents knowing what their president says and believes, versus reducing the harm where that speech is potentially dangerous,” says Evelyn Douek, an affiliate at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society. Douek cautioned against expecting a platform like Twitter to completely solve the problems […]

A dance music festival has been given the go-ahead to take place as scheduled in Kansas City in September. Dancefestopia is one of the only events that has not been cancelled or postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic after officials gave organisers permission to hold the event. In a Facebook post, the festival’s organisers wrote: “BREAKING NEWS!! State and County guidance enables a #FULLSEND to Dancefestopia 2020.” They acknowledged that the “situation could change”, but noted that “county and state officials approved Dancefestopia 2020” yesterday (May 28). Advertisement 🚨BREAKING NEWS!!🚨State and County guidance enables a #FULLSEND to Dancefestopia 2020. The situation could change;… Posted by Dancefestopia on Thursday, May 28, 2020 “We will continue to work with health and government officials to establish a safe DFT 2020,” they added. Dancefestopia is due to take place between September 10-13 and will see the likes of GRiZ, Zed’s Dead, REZZ, TroyBoi and more perform. No word has been given on whether the festival will implement social distancing measures to prevent the potential spread of the virus. According to the New York Times, Missouri has seen 12,934 cases and 740 deaths during the coronavirus pandemic at the time of writing. Advertisement Last month, a […]

Courtesy While things may feel stuck at a standstill, there are some couples who are not letting anything stop their love. Proposals are still happening amidst a pandemic and we cannot be happier for those making the best out of a grim situation. We can all use some good news these days. Typical engagement parties are on pause right now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate the occasion by mailing the couple a sweet gift. From a breakfast-themed cookbook to a chic wine decanter, we rounded up fifteen thoughtful engagement gifts ahead. View Gallery 15 Photos 1 of 15 Wine Decanter RBT verishop.com $100.00 Doing grown-up things like getting married means it’s time for a sophisticated wine decanter.  2 of 15 Breakfast: The Cookbook Phaidon phaidon.com $49.95 The most important meal of the day should have plenty of options. From sweet to savory, these recipes will help the couple create breakfast dishes from all over the globe.  3 of 15 Table Topics UncommonGoods uncommongoods.com $25.00 There’s never an awkward silence between them, but this fun table game will inspire new conversations. 4 of 15 Lismore Diamond Lead Crystal Picture Frame Waterford nordstrom.com $90.00 Engagement photos will fit beautifully in this […]

Sony has finally given a date for when it next plans to talk about the PlayStation 5. The company is preparing “a look at the future of gaming” for 1 p.m. Pacific time on June 4. But what exactly should you expect to see at that event? Let’s take a closer look. What we know about the PS5 so far is what’s inside the system and a few other details. Like the Xbox Series X, the PS5 features AMD hardware. This includes a Zen 2 CPU and a Navi GPU. The console also has a super-fast PCIe 4.0 SSD and a data-transfer architecture to match. But the acronyms and initialisms don’t really matter. What you need to know is that the PS5 has significantly more GPU power and a massive leap in CPU and data throughput compared to the current generation. Join us Thursday, June 4 at 1:00pm Pacific time for a look at the future of gaming on PlayStation 5: https://t.co/Yr8fafcOVd #PS5 pic.twitter.com/F0yBbDmOtC — PlayStation (@PlayStation) May 29, 2020 On top of all that, developers and publishers continue to praise the design of the PS5. Some have told GamesBeat that it has a better architecture than any console in […]

Neil Finn has recruited his Fleetwood Mac bandmates Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie for a new song called “Find Your Way Back Home.” It was written by Finn about the Auckland homeless population, inspired by a chance encounter he had at the Auckland City Mission, and sales from the song will go towards the Mission’s new building for services and housing. Take a listen to the song below. “I live in a pretty fortunate situation and I move in circles that are not in daily contact with homeless people. So it’s good to be able to find a pathway in your head to relate to some degree,” Finn told the New Zealand Herald. “”I haven’t felt compelled to go down that path in terms of speaking out. But in terms of trying to do some kindly acts as you strike situations, I think that’s compulsive and we should all be trying to do that.” Finn, who embarked on a solo career following the dissolution of Crowded House, has been performing in Fleetwood Mac since 2018, following the exit of Lindsey Buckingham. Crowded House were scheduled to perform reunion tour dates in the United Kingdom later this summer; those dates have […]

The only thing better than investing in a designer bag is finding one at a discount. But the problem is that brands like Louis Vuitton historically do not mark down their products (in order to control the value of their goods), and you’ll rarely find a Chanel bag on clearance in a Chanel store. The loophole? Buy it secondhand. We know, we know—while this seems like an obvious, sustainable solution, the task can be daunting. The fear of being scammed is real: “super fakes” or “triple-A fakes” are almost indistinguishable from authentic luxury goods, and even a pair of trained eyes can be confused by its quality. As scary as that sounds, the best you can do is shop smart. We spoke to experts in the field to help navigate your search for your dream bag, including where to shop and helpful tips on how to avoid being duped. This content is imported from Instagram. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. First things first, do your homework “Researching is the key to making a successful secondhand purchase,” says Charles Gorra, CEO […]

In case you somehow missed it, our friends at Road & Track launched a new Q&A interview series earlier this month called Inside Track. Their first guest, legendary racing driver Mario Andretti, was a joy to speak with, providing some wonderful insight into his racing career and personal life. Head on over to the dedicated signup page here to access episode two of Inside Track on Thursday, June 4, 6:00 p.m. EST. But we’re not stopping there. Inside Track is back for episode two, and this time, we’re bringing along world-renowned chef David Burke. With 12 restaurants and multiple television appearances to his name, he’s a guest we’re honored to have. Burke will be joined by R&T editorial director Mike Guy through an internet video conference as they perform a virtual cooking demo, making a sirloin steak recipe. The two will also talk about how the restaurant industry is banding together to help feed frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how he’s making an impact to #feedtheheroes. If you want to see it all go down, head on over to our dedicated signup page here. Once you’re registered, we’ll send you the recipe so you can prepare your own […]

Welcome to the Second Round of the Deadspin Arena Anthem Death Match! Plenty of upsets, plenty of non-surprises and plenty of hurt feelings in Round One, to be sure. What will get now with our 32 combatants, all of whom have already proven their mettle in vanquishing a worthy opponent. The races should tighten up a bit overall now, and the matchups really start to peg personal favorites against each other. Just like a good bracket should. So let’s get started. Here are some musings on the Round of 32 … Advertisement EAST 1. Seven Nation Army, The White Stripes 82% ✅ / 16. Kernkraft 400, Zombie Nation 18% (1,588 total votes) Advertisement Welp. The Army, Seven Nation, is STRONG. And pissed that I tried to pull a fast one on them. Nacion de Zombie is EQUALLY pissed at me for ruining their chances at a run! No regrets from me, but the people have spoken, and I now don’t see a legit threat to SNA until a few rounds from now. 8. Everybody Dance Now, C+C Music Factory 55% ✅ / 9. Good Vibrations, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch 45% (1,533 total votes) G/O Media may get a […]

Trump himself gets a pass when it comes to moderation because what a president says is newsworthy. That’s a defendable stance, but as he increasingly violates standards and norms, his posts have become a firehose of toxicity. In 2017, Dorsey told me, “I think it’s really important that we maintain open channels to our leaders, whether we like what they’re saying or not, because I don’t know of another way to hold them accountable.” He also implied that newsworthiness might have to be balanced with community standards. That was many tweets ago, and it wasn’t until this week that Twitter provided a fact-check to a Trump tweet that told falsehoods about voting by mail. (Still, Twitter left standing a Trump tweet spreading a bogus charge that former congressperson Joe Scarborough once killed an aide.) Zuckerberg has given Trump and other conservatives an even wider berth, beginning with his 2015 decision to leave up Trump’s anti-Muslim post that seemingly violated the company’s hate speech policy. During the 2016 election, Facebook did not remove false news stories from make-believe publications, even though it was clear that such information overwhelmingly benefited Trump. Despite this, the right kept complaining of bias, with Republicans blasting […]

Once the wax has hardened, it’s time to remove as much of it as you can. Using a dull knife or the edge of a pie server (even the edge of a credit card can work in a pinch), slide the tool under the edge of the wax and gently chip away. For smooth fabrics, this method might remove the surface wax in one convenient piece, whereas textured fabrics will likely require more work. For the latter, make sure the fabric surface is taut, and gently scrape to remove excess flakes of wax—be careful not to damage the fabric as you go.

Knowing how to get crayon out of clothes can work wonders for restoring a number of your favorite items, but others may have to be outsourced to a professional cleaner. These include items that are “dry-clean only”, can’t be laundered in hot water, especially delicate, or highly textured. When in doubt, always check the care label.

President Donald Trump said he will introduce legislation that may scrap or weaken a law that has long protected internet companies, including Twitter and Facebook, an extraordinary attempt to intervene in the media that experts said was unlikely to survive legal scrutiny. Trump signed an executive order on Thursday afternoon after attacking Twitter for tagging his tweets about unsubstantiated claims of fraud in mail-in voting with a warning prompting readers to fact-check the posts. Trump said we may “remove or change” Section 230 of a law known as the Communications Decency Act through legislation so social media companies will not enjoy this legal immunity, which protects such platforms from liability for content posted by their users. The President also said U.S. Attorney General William Barr will pursue said legislation to regulate social media companies. VB Transform 2020 Online – July 15-17. Join leading AI executives: Register for the free livestream. On Wednesday, Reuters reported the White House’s plan to modify Section 230 based on a copy of a draft order. Facebook and Twitter did not immediately comment on the executive order. The President’s remarks and the draft order, as written, attempts to circumvent Congress and the courts in directing changes […]

Kate Tempest has shared a moving poem about the NHS for an upcoming charity book project – listen to it below. The poem is set to appear in a book called Dear NHS: 100 Stories To Say Thank You, which features 100 household names telling their personal stories of the health service. Curated and edited by Adam Kay, the author of This is Going to Hurt, celebrity contributors include: Paul McCartney, Emilia Clarke, Peter Kay, Stephen Fry, Dawn French, Sir Trevor McDonald, Graham Norton, Sir Michael Palin, Naomie Harris, Ricky Gervais, Sir David Jason, Dame Emma Thompson, Joanna Lumley and many more. Advertisement Today (May 28), Tempest took to Twitter to share her poem in audio form. “I was asked to write a poem about the NHS for a charity book project called ‘Dear NHS’ headed up by Adam Kay, bestselling author of This Is Going To Hurt. All royalties going to NHS Charities Together,” she wrote, before sharing the book’s pre-order link. Listen to Tempest’s poem below: I was asked to write a poem about the NHS for a charity book project called ‘Dear NHS’ headed up by Adam Kay, bestselling author of This Is Going To Hurt. All royalties going to […]

Just when you thought that dating in quarantine would at least free us from the world of ghosting, a sneaker collab dropped early this morning like an unprompted 2 AM text. Launching today, Converse teamed up with Carhartt Work In Progress (WIP) for a pair of messy sneakers that are out here to undo all of the work you did in therapy. Eventually you’ll end up with a nice pair of loafers or reliable running shoes, but these Chuck 70s are like that twenty-something fling we all fondly remember, even if they did leave us on read. The anti-hype fashion giants, both universally loved by those who live in whatever the BedStuy is of any major city, created a pair of kicks that appear to lack both arch support and emotional maturity. If the sound of a skateboard rolling down the pavement instantly makes you turn your head, you’re in for a bad time because these shoes will: have extreme opinions about the early work of Jean-Luc Goddard. exclusively order a Tecate with a shot. either sleep on a floor mattress or own a loft apartment tastefully decorated in Chandigarh chairs and a signed Alexander Calder lithograph. say “ethically non-monogamy,” […]

After Twitter applied a fact-checking label to a pair of the president’s tweets for the first time ever this week, Donald Trump vowed revenge. “Twitter is completely stifling FREE SPEECH, and I, as President, will not allow it to happen!” he declared on—where else—Twitter. “Republicans feel that Social Media Platforms totally silence conservatives voices. We will strongly regulate, or close them down, before we can ever allow this to happen.” Today, he followed through … sort of. This afternoon, Trump signed an executive order that targets not just Twitter but social media writ large. The final version still hasn’t been released, but according to leaked drafts, the White House will direct federal agencies to stop advertising on platforms that discriminate politically and ask the Federal Trade Commission to investigate whether platforms are mistreating users. Most significantly, it will ask the Federal Communications Commission to propose regulations that “clarify” the meaning of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act—the federal law that gives internet platforms broad legal immunity over how they choose to regulate, or not, the content of user posts. It’s a not-so-veiled threat to punish Twitter and other platforms for purported anticonservative bias, by opening them up to costly […]

The Recording Academy Producers & Engineers Wing has released a list of “Safe Studio Considerations,” a list of recommendations aimed towards recording studio operators as they reopen in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The list was developed with input and assistance from “numerous recording studio owners, engineers, and others around the country.” In addition to basic measures (i.e. routine disinfecting, keeping 6 feet apart, wearing face coverings when inside the facility, taking temperature checks of anyone coming to the studio), the list includes more specific recommendations for engineers, vocalists, and musicians. “Microphones should be monitored and cleaned before and after all sessions. Consider requesting that musicians and vocalists bring their own personal pop filters and sanitize them themselves,” reads one recommendation. Another says, “If possible, request that musicians and vocalists bring their own personal headphones with 1⁄4-inch jacks and sanitize them themselves.” Find the full list here. Check out “How to Buy the Best Home Recording Studio Equipment: A Beginner’s Guide.”