South Carolina Takes Home Second Title of the Dawn Staley Era
The South Carolina Gamecocks went into pre-season with a first-place ranking, and that’s precisely where they finished on Sunday. Led by the all-out play of Destanni Henderson, who had a season-high 26 points, South Carolina cut down the nets, beating UConn 64-49. With the win, Dawn Staley became the first Black Division I NCAA basketball coach – men’s or women’s – to win two championships.
Elon Musk Buys 9.2% Stake in Twitter, Stock Soars in Premarket Trading
Reports emerged last week that Elon Musk was considering launching his own social media platform. However, the Tesla boss seems to have revised his plans, as reports emerged on Monday that he has purchased a 9.2% “passive” stake in Twitter. Musk is no stranger to the platform, frequently tweeting his hot takes and tepid observations to his 80 million followers. In response to the news, Twitter stock rose dramatically, up nearly 26% in pre-market trading. The move leaves some wondering if this is a precursor to a full takeover.
Hypebeast Merges with Iron Spark, Expected to List on NASDAQ
Hypebeast, the tastemaking site that grew from a blog to a following of more than 26 million, has merged with venture capital company Iron Spark. The move is expected to infuse $180 million into Hypebeast, which will unlock new opportunities across its multiple platforms. Hypebeast is also backed by an all-star bunch of PIPE investors including Tom Brady, Naomi Osaka, and Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman‘s Thirty Five Ventures. Additionally, former Nike president Trevor Edwards is expected to take over as director at Hypebeast.
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Jon Batiste Takes Home Album of the Year at 64th Grammy Awards
Music’s biggest acts showed up and showed out in Las Vegas for the rescheduled 64th Grammys. It was a huge night for some of the industry’s biggest stars. Silk Sonic took home Record of the Year for ‘Leave the Door Open,’ while Olivia Rodrigo won Best New Artist and Best Pop Album. Questlove won Best Music Film for Summer of Soul, just one week after the viral moment that preceded his Oscar win. The night’s most-nominated artist, Jon Batiste, capped his five-award evening with Album of the Year. The event also included a video appearance from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Tiger Woods Declares Masters Appearance Will Be ‘Game Time Decision’
Tiger Woods touched down in Augusta last week; however, it is still unclear if the five-time champion will play in this year’s Masters. Woods announced late last year that he would only play in selective tournaments for the remainder of his career following his 2021 car accident. This year’s Masters Tournament will mark 25 years since Woods put on his first green jacket.
Tiffany & Co. Releases Tiff Coin, Unlocks Exclusive Events
Tiffany’s is having a moment. From Pharrell’s ubiquitous diamond-studded glasses to the highly coveted Wilson basketball collab, the legacy brand is everywhere these days. Now, it is launching its own signature coin, following an April Fool’s joke that teased the same thing. The coins were available for a short window of time for $9,999 and will enable access to future events held by Tiffany’s.
Sports Dominate Broadcast Winners in Q1
The first quarter is in the books with the turn of the calendar. Looking back on the first three months of the year, sports placed in 45 of the top 50 broadcasts according to Sports Business Journal. The Super Bowl took the top slot by a huge margin, followed by the AFC and NFC Championships. The State of the Union was the first non-sports event on the list, taking the eighth spot.
Snoop Dogg Heads to the Metaverse to Film New Video
Snoop is all in on the blockchain. The West Coast rapper recently purchased Death Row Records and immediately announced that it would become an NFT label. Since then, he released a mixtape that can only be purchased with Apecoin and teased additional moves to make good on his promise. Most recently, he shot his newest video for “House I Built” in the metaverse. The video features multiple iterations of Snoop living his best life in Web3.
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