Coolio performs at Riot Fest in Douglass Park on September 18, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Barry Brecheisen/WireImage)
Posthumous Coolio Album
When the late rapper Coolio died suddenly in 2022, he had a new album in the works. Now that project, titled Long Live Coolio, is set to be released posthumously later this year with guest appearances from Ras Kass, Treach from Naughty By Nature and J-Dee from Da Lench Mob. The 11-track album is being pitched as a celebration of the legendary rapper's career, which took off in the 1990s with classic hits such as “Gangsta’s Paradise” and “Fantastic Voyage."
Southbox Raises $80 Million
The Atlanta-based media company Southbox Entertainment has raised a total of $80 million to greenlight new movie and TV projects, according to Deadline. The fundraising could have big implications for the industry, as the company is promising to spend a good portion on independent films with budgets of $5 million to $35 million. It's also likely that many of the projects will be developed in Georgia, where tax credits have helped spur a boom in production.
Sarah Silverman Sues OpenAI
Comedian Sarah Silverman is joining a class-action lawsuit against OpenAI and Meta alleging that both companies' large language models were trained using illegally-acquired data sets containing her work. Specifically, the suit claims that the companies tapped so-called “shadow library” websites such as Bibliotik, Library Genesis, Z-Library, which featured Silverman's copyright-protected work. Authors Christopher Golden and Richard Kadrey are also joining the lawsuit.
'Blacklist' Finale
The NBC show The Blacklist is ending its 10-year run with a two-hour-long finale. Star James Spader, who plays Raymond “Red” Reddington, told AP News the cast was grateful for the chance to take their time saying goodbye. He also noted that the show, which was mostly shot in New York City, went overseas to Spain for the finale.
All-Pro Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman Ronnie Stanley joins Cheddar News to discuss launching The Ronnie Stanley Foundation, whose mission is to improve the quality of life for rescue dogs, provide training that cultivates therapeutic properties, and match each rescue with an individual who has faced a challenge in life such as a chronic illness or emotional trauma.
Jill and Carlo cover the latest with the infrastructure bill, the growing state rebellion over boosters, Trump's dereliction of duty on the pandemic, Taylor Swift's reign of cultural domination and more.
Danielle Mone Truitt, the actress who stars as Sergeant Ayanna Bell and partner to Chris Meloni's Elliot Stabler in the latest series in the Dick Wolf universe, joined Cheddar to discuss her leading role.
2021 has been the year of many things, and one of them is the NFT or non-fungible token. We've seen NFTs come about for so many different things.
Digital artists have used them to sell their artwork in a more traditional art transaction than the internet had previously allowed. We've seen specific NFT campaigns like the pudgy penguins amass large followings. And now we're seeing them expand into horror films just in time for spooky season.
The iconic horror movie franchise "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" has launched its debut NFT line entitled "Leatherfaces." the illustrations are designed by Skinner in partnership with Ultra Rare to reveal a total of over 10,000 Leatherface avatars. The collection gives fans, NFT fiends and blockchain fanatics access to a new Texas Chainsaw Massacre metaverse unlike any that has been seen before.
Richie Hobson, co-founder of Ultra Rare, joins None of the Above to discuss.
The USO is hosting a 72 hour streamathon on Twitch called #OperationPlayItForward, and is tapping into Gen Z superstars and gamers to raise money for the organization through the power of the esports community. The goal here is to help support both the new generation of troops and their families. Director of Global Gaming Operations at USO Callum Fletcher and Former UFC Lightweight Champ and Twitch Partner Jens Pulver, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse joined Cheddar to discuss the latest push to get rid of Daylight Savings Time. A practice where several say can cause havoc on one's sleeping schedule and cause disruptions to our economy.
The past decade or so has been a has seen massive change-- usually good-- for the LGBTQ+ community. Same-sex marriage has seen broader acceptance, and there's been increased conversation about the reality of gender identity. Now, folks who don't identify as male or female can travel while staying true to their more authentic self.
The Biden administration has issued the first passport with a gender-neutral designation "X." the passport was issued to Dana Zzyym, an intersex activist from Colorado, after a long legal battle with the state department in which Zzyym argued they shouldn't be required to lie about their identity on their passport. Advocates for such changes have applauded the move, saying it will allow people who don't identify as male or female to travel the globe in a more safe and visible way.
Paul Castillo, counsel at Lambda Legal and Zzyym's attorney in this case, joins None of the Above to discuss.
The Biden Administration has announced its latest plans to support veterans who had been exposed to toxic chemicals from burn pits. According to several veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, a number of them were exposed to hour-long periods of burn pits. As a result, many of them say they have suffered from severe life-long side effects. Co-founder at Burn Pits 360 Le Roy Torres, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
If you've been to the grocery store lately you may have noticed that your grocery store bill is higher than usual. It looks like prices aren't slowing down anytime soon. According to recent data, inflation has spiked to a 30- year high. Editor-in-Chief from Investopedia Caleb Silver, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
