by Jac Kern
04.09.2013
39 days ago
Posted In:
TV/Celebrity,
Music at 02:17 PM |
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Jac's roundup of pop culture news and Internet findings
Country music is
kind of one of those love-it-or-hate-it genres. You often hear people with
limited exposure to music say “I listen to anything but Country;” at the same
time, area Country music concerts draw huge crowds (CityBeat readers even voted
the 2012 Kenny Chesney/Tim McGraw show the best concert of the year. Sigh.) — and we’re north of the
Mason-Dixie line. Sure, it’s pretty easy to make fun of the stereotypical
redneck Country music lover, but Country is making its way more and more into
the mainstream, popular stage with crossover artists like Taylor Swift. And you
don’t have to be a toothless moonshiner to like her squinty-eyed ass, right?
Brad Paisley just set
the genre back a few decades with his new single, “Accidental Racist.”
The song is meant to explain how just because someone is southern and proud of
his roots, doesn’t mean he wishes we still had slaves. See, all Paisley wants
is to be able to wear a Lynyrd Skynyrd T-shirt to Starbucks without some black
barista thinkin’ he’s a racist (and who hasn’t
been in that situation). Between that target of a song title and the
poorly-written lyrics, Paisley’s gotten a lot of backlash. He appeared on Ellen Tuesday to rectify the song and
his intention and started the conversation like any good non-racist should: by
citing that one of his best friends is black (LL Cool J, who appears on the track).
The song is being
pulled from YouTube and music sites faster than you can say “publicity stunt,” but
you can see the lyrics here. One gem of note is
LL’s chorus: "If
you don't judge my do-rag/I won't judge your red flag/If you don't judge my
gold chains/I'll forget the iron chains." See, guys? If you just stop being
afraid of black guys who wear bling, all that white guilt can go away because
we’re forgiven!
What’s that sound? Oh, it’s
Conan O’Brien quietly weeping in the shower, because Jimmy Fallon is officially
taking over for Jay Leno by this time next year. Fallon’s Late Night is by far my favorite of all
the nightly talk shows, so I think he’ll kill it in the earlier slot with the
help of his trusty house band The Roots and Saturday
Night Live’s Lorne Michaels as producer. The Tonight Show will move back to New York with this change, the
first time in 40 years, when Johnny Carson hosted. Rumored Late Night replacements include current SNL “Weekend Update” host, Seth Meyers.
Imagine if you
were the sibling of a popular ‘90s singer/actress, trying to make your own name
in the business. You release a couple mediocre albums, leak a sex tape with
your no-name girlfriend, even star in a VH1 reality show. Years pass and, somehow,
that big-booty trick you propelled into the spotlight is now about 700 times
more famous than you. What do you do? Well, if you’re Ray J, you release “I Hit
It First,”
a song with “Kim K” written all over it. And if lyrics like “She might move on
to rappers and ballplayers/But we all know I hit it first” weren’t obvious enough,
the single cover is a pixelated photo of Kanye’s baby mama:
Cincinnati on TV
Alert: The Cooking Channel debuts a new series, America’s Best Bites, on
April 20 (a perfect program to accompany your munchies. Yes, I am 17 years
old). Hosted by Natalie Forte, the show travels across the country to showcase
local fare and favorites. Nothing revolutionary here, but Cincy’s own Daniel and
Lana Wright of Abigail Street and Senate will appear on the show’s third
episode. Check out Abigail Street on ABB at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, May 4. Move over sloths.
Step aside, oil-covered birds getting Dawn baths. My new favorite quirky cuties
of the animal world are pets with cleft palates.
You say deformity,
I say givemeonenoooowwwww
Meet Lentil. This little pup
has had a rough road due to his irregular palate, but thanks to a feeding tube
and a wonderful foster family, this little bean is growing to be healthy and adorable. Follow his heart-melting
story on Facebook.
Palate mutations
are not just exhibited in dogs, though. Take it from Lazarus,
vamp-kitty!
Lazarus was a
sickly alley cat when he was rescued, but now maintains a relatively normal
kitty life, even without a nose and several teeth!
And, on the topic
of online pet stalking, it would be remiss to not highlight the animal Internet
trend du jour: dogs in pantyhose.
Big thanks to HBO
for the shout out in their new HBO Go commercial!
Boomboxes achieve collector status and offer a break from incessant multi-tasking
0 Comments · Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Watching the unveiling of the new Apple iPad solidified my decision about the vintage boombox that I'd purchased off eBay. I had originally begun searching for a portable stereo cassette player to listen to old tapes. Since then, I've realized that I had unwittingly become a member of a worldwide subculture where vintage boomboxes are as good as gold.