On Friday, Darius Rucker released “Carolyn's Boy,” an album in tribute to his late mom, who died in 1992 from a heart attack

Country music singer Jason Aldeon is facing an intense wave of backlash after his song, “Try That In A Small Town”, went viral online, prompting many people to accuse him of dog-whistle racism. The song sets footage of Black Lives Matter protests alongside lyrics like: “Try that in a small town / See how far ya make it down the road / Around here, we take care of our own.” The song continues: “Cuss out a cop, spit in his face / Stomp on the flag and light it up / Yeah, ya think you’re tough.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The BLM protests were a direct reaction to the murder of African-American man George Floyd by a white police officer. The clips in the music video, which also include an attempted convenience store robbery and other apparent crimes, alternate with shots of Aldean and his band performing in the public square of Columbia, Tennessee. To make things worse, the video is shot in front of the Maury County Courthouse, which at times appears to be on fire with images of burning US flags projected onto it. It’s the same building where a mob hanged 18-year-old African-American Henry Choate from the balcony in 1927. Columbia is also the site of an infamous 1946 race riot that nearly resulted in the lynching of future Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall. Another lyric goes: “Got a gun that my granddad gave me / They say one day they’re gonna round up / Well that s--- might fly in the city / Good luck.” Country Music Television (CMT) confirmed Tuesday that it had pulled the video from rotation. Social media has been ablaze with the controversy for much of the last week. Democrat state representative for Tenessee, Justin Jones, called the song "heinous", and a "shameful vision of gun extremism and vigilantism". One user said that if Lil Durk, a black American rapper, made a response to Aldean's video called "Try That On The South Side of Chicago", it would likely be denounced as violent. Others shared videos explaining exactly why people are interpreting the song as dog-whistle racism. Aldean has stood by the song, saying: “There is not a single lyric in the song that references race or points to it – and there isn’t a single video clip that isn’t real news footage – and while I can try and respect others to have their own interpretation of a song with music – this one goes too far.” Needless to say, the people defending him are all the ones you might expect. Top Republicans have jumped to Aldean’s aid, including former president Donald Trump and Florida governor Ron DeSantis. “Jason Aldean is a fantastic guy who just came out with a great new song. Support Jason all the way. MAGA!!!” Trump posted on his Truth Social account. The conservative influencer Ben Shapiro posted a video to his YouTube channel titled “Jason Aldean REFUSES To Get Cancelled”, in which he discusses the controversy and takes Aldean’s side. Most recently, Aldean has been filmed at a concert over the weekend defending the song further. He said: “What I am is a proud American.” “I love our country. I want to see it restored to what it once was before all this bulls*** started happening to us.” “I love my country, I love my family, and I will do anything to protect that. I can tell you that.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Cher is remembering her friend Tina Turner as being happy, but also over being sick.

We all know The Matrix and John Wick star Keanu Reeves is a pretty cool guy, but an anecdote from actor Kate Beckinsale shared on Instagram is seeing the film star given some belated kudos for what happened at the Cannes Film Festival in 1993. The pair were due to appear on the red carpet for the film Much Ado About Nothing, which is a bit ironic considering Beckinsale revealed she suffered a wardrobe malfunction on her journey to the event. Posting a snap from the red carpet, explaining that her mum managed to find a picture from Cannes from more than two decades ago, the Underworld star explained that she bought the bodysuit in the photo from a Sock Shop at an airport. “When I got in the car to drive to the premiere with Denzel and Pauletta Washington, all the poppers in the crotch popped themselves open and it flipped up like a roller blind. “I didn’t feel it was appropriate to go delving around in my undercarriage with all of us in the back of the car so I just quietly panicked,” she said. A dreaded wardrobe malfunction. We hate to see it. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Beckinsale continued: “Walked out onto the biggest red carpet of my life and whispered to Keanu and Robert Sean Leonard what had happened. “In this picture I am holding the front gusset down and the two of them are holding the back gusset. Absolute legends who may not even have fully understood the physics of what was happening or even heard the word ‘gusset’ before, but both jumped in to save me no questions asked.” Not all heroes wear capes - well, unless they’re playing the iconic role of Neo in The Matrix franchise, that is. Responding to the story, King Kong star Naomi Watts wrote: “Hysterical." Meanwhile, fashion designer Bach Mai replied that he “[loves] this story”. Iconic. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Muhamed Kahrimanovic, nicknamed 'Hammerhand', rose to international acclaim for his strength and will be displaying his skill in Season 18 of 'AGT'

'The View' host Ana Navarro took a dig at California Governor Gavin Newsom after he challenged Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for a debate

All five answers to the questions below have something in common. Can you figure it out?

Comic book legend Stan Lee started out writing obituaries.

'Sister Wives' star Meri Brown's daughter posts wedding picture with Kody Brown to nowhere be found

John Cena is undoubtedly one of the most iconic WWE Superstars of all time. Following his surprise appearance at The O2 London during WWE Money in the Bank, Cena will be returning to SmackDown on Friday 1st September at the Giant Center in Hershey, Pennsylvania and appearing at WWE Superstar Spectacle at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad, India, on Friday 8th September. Cena will also appear on SmackDown for seven consecutive weeks, beginning Friday 15th September through to the end of October. John Cena has proven himself to be the G.O.A.T. in a myriad of ways, from his big screen moments to his philanthropy. Here are six reasons why the WWE Universe keep wanting more: 1. His character: Cena's personality and strong connection with his audience, especially when it comes to his younger fans, cemented his status as a WWE legend long ago. His signature catchphrases - "Never Give Up and "You Can't See Me” - have transcended the WWE Universe and permeated mainstream global culture. His ability to create exciting matches, promos and voiceovers are what has made him one of the most loved WWE Superstars in history. 2. His trophy cabinet: During his expansive WWE career, Cena has become a 16-time WWE Champion - a record he currently shares with two-time WWE Hall of Famer, Ric Flair. During his time on the main WWE roster, Cena has feuded with other big-name WWE Superstars including Randy Orton, Edge, Shawn Michaels, and The Rock. 3. His good heart: Cena's philanthropic efforts, including his work with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, have earned him a great deal of respect and admiration. Cena holds the current Guinness World Record for granting the most Make-a-Wish wishes in history - 650 and counting - which The Guinness World Records site hailed as a “herculean” effort. 4. His following: Almost 20 million people follow John Cena on Instagram, where his random approach to posting often leaves fans confused, but intrigued. Over on X, Cena likes to wax philosophical, with 14 million followers logging on for his daily nuggets of wisdom. “The real challenge often starts after the finish line”, Cena posted last week. 5. His acting skills: Cena's mainstream popularity extends well beyond the WWE Universe. John Cena has starred in blockbuster Hollywood movies including the "Fast & Furious" franchise, "Trainwreck," "Bumblebee" and of course, 2023’s hottest Hollywood release, “Barbie” - where he played Mermaid Ken, alongside Mermaid Barbie, Dua Lipa. 6. His gravitas: Many fellow wrestlers and industry professionals have spoken highly of Cena's professionalism, leadership, and willingness to help others succeed in the business. Click here to see Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins, Cody Rhodes, Bianca Belair, Kevin Owens and The Miz share the lessons they’ve learned from the legendary John Cena. John Cena will make his triumphant return to SmackDown in Hershey, Pennsylvania this week, and in India just a week later. Tune in on TNT Sports Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

The Paul brothers were trolled by fans for criticizing Dillon Danis' sparring style

YouTuber MrBeast is being counter-sued for $100 million by Virtual Dining Concepts, the company behind Beast Burger restaurants. MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, shared in June that he was going to be “moving on” from his Beast Burger restaurants in order to concentrate more on his snack business with his chocolate bar brand Feastables. Just over two years ago Donaldson partnered with Virtual Dining Concepts (VDC) to launch over 2,000 ‘ghost kitchens’ to make Beast Burger available across the United States. VDC are suing Donaldson for failing to honour his contractual obligations, as well as intentional tortious interference. The lawsuit was filed on Monday morning in the Supreme Court of the State of New York for the County of New York. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The suit, obtained by Variety, is a response to Donaldson suing VDC and its parent company last month, wanting to terminate the deal for his restaurant chain, alleging the burgers it served were called “disgusting,” “revolting” and “inedible” which damaged his reputation. Last week, VDC hit back at the suit claiming it was “riddled with false statements and inaccuracies”, as well as calling it “meritless” and “ill-advised”. “This case is about a social media celebrity who believes his fame means that his word does not matter, that the facts do not matter, and that he can renege and breach his contractual obligations without consequence,” the suit states. “He is mistaken.” The counter-suit claims that Donaldson had breached the parties’ agreements and interfered with business dealings. As a result, it has damaged the reputation of MrBeast Burger and VDC, turned away customers and ruined relationships with suppliers and vendors. The lawsuit also contains examples of deleted tweets from the YouTube star’s account where he writes that he wished to close the burger business, writing: “the company I partnered with won’t let me stop even though it’s terrible for my brand.” VDC was co-founded by Robert Earl, who is the founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood. The company has backed celebrity brands including those from Mariah Carey and Mario Lopez. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.