Ryan Garcia Training with Derrick James Ahead of 140-Pound Title Campaign

Posted on May 19, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Ryan Garcia has a new trainer…

The 24-year-old Mexican American star boxer will train with Derrick James in Dallas ahead of his campaign for a 140-pound title, Garcia announced on social media.

Garcia presented James as his trainer on Instagram, where he boasts 10.4 million followers. Garcia had parted ways with trainer Joe Goossen following a seventh-round KO loss to Gervonta Davis last month in Las Vegas.

That superfight, which netted $22.8 million in ticket sales, was contested at a 136-pound catchweight, but Garcia (23-1, 19 KOs), ESPN’s No. 6 boxer at 140 pounds, will compete at junior welterweight going forward.

“I’m searching for greatness,” Garcia told ESPN. “I’m looking to improve. I’m looking to be a champion with Derrick James. I feel he can guide me and mentor me.”

James is ESPN’s reigning Trainer of the Year. In 2022, the former boxer guided Errol Spence Jr. and Jermell Charlo to unification title wins, as Spence added a third welterweight title while Charlo became the undisputed junior middleweight champion.

Earlier this year, James began working with former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, and now the trainer has added a fourth marquee fighter to the mix. James is known for perfecting power punchers, so it’s a natural fit with the heavy-handed Garcia.

Garcia first teamed with Goossen as an amateur boxer in Southern California. Garcia was trained by his father, Henry, for many of his pro fights, but Eddy Reynoso took control of the corner in 2018.

Reynoso, Canelo Alvarez‘s longtime trainer, guided Garcia to five wins in five bouts, including his seventh-round TKO of Luke Campbell in January 2021. Following that career-best victory, Garcia was out of the ring for 15 months while he addressed his mental health and recovered from wrist surgery.

When Garcia returned in April 2022, there was a familiar face in his corner alongside his father: Goossen. Goossen, 69, trained Garcia for three fights: a decision win over Emmanuel Tagoe in April 2022, a sixth-round KO of Javier Fortuna in July and, finally, the loss to Davis.

Kali Uchis Releases New Album “Red Moon in Venus”

Posted on March 3, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Kali Uchis is over the (red) moon…

The 28-year-old Colombian-American singer and songwriter has released her new album Red Moon in Venus, which Complex calls a “fully realized universe made possible by the singer’s confident vision.”

While Uchis’ latest album isn’t without guests (Don Toliver, Omar Apollo, and Summer Walker lend their vocals to the album), the bulk of the 15-track release keeps the focus on her.

“Phase 1 complete,” Uchis told fans when rolling out the new album.

“Love is the message,” Uchis previously said of the new album. “Red Moon In Venus is a timeless, burning expression of desire, heartbreak, faith, and honesty, reflecting the divine femininity of the moon and Venus.”

Red Moon in Venus follows 2020’s Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios), which went on to earn a Grammy nomination and appeared on numerous year-end lists.

A tour in support of Venus is slated to kick off in Austin, Texas on April 25 and also features stops in Atlanta, New York, Boston, Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, Las Vegas and more.

HBO Renews Pedro Pascal’s “The Last of Us” for Second Season

Posted on January 28, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

You haven’t seen the last of Pedro Pascal…

HBO has renewed its high-profile drama The Last of Us, starring the 47-year-old Chilean actor, for a second season.

The announcement comes just after two episodes of the video game-based series from Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann.

Earlier this month, The Last of Us scored the second-largest premiere after House of the Dragon since Boardwalk Empire’s launch in 2010.

Episode 1 has surpassed 22 million viewers domestically, up nearly five times from its premiere-night audience on January 15. Episode 2 drew 5.7 million viewers across HBO Max and linear telecasts in the U.S. Sunday night. That’s about a million more than the audience that tuned in for the premiere episode and it marks the largest Week 2 audience growth for any HBO Original drama series. The series also is strong on social media, trending No. 1 both in the U.S. and worldwide on Twitter during its series debut.

“Craig and Neil, alongside EP Carolyn Strauss, and the rest of our phenomenal cast and crew, have defined a genre with their masterful debut season of The Last of Us,” said Francesca Orsi, EVP of HBO Programming, Head of HBO Drama Series and Films. “After pulling off this unforgettable first season, I can’t wait to watch this team outshine themselves again with Season 2.”

Based on Naughty Dog’s award-winning video game, The Last of Us takes place 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed.

Joel, played by Pascal, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie (Bella Ramsey), a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal and heartbreaking journey as they both must traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.

“I’m humbled, honored, and frankly overwhelmed that so many people have tuned in and connected with our retelling of Joel and Ellie’s journey. The collaboration with Craig Mazin, our incredible cast & crew, and HBO exceeded my already high expectations,” said executive producer Druckmann. “Now we have the absolute pleasure of being able to do it again with season two! On behalf of everyone at Naughty Dog & PlayStation, thank you!”

In addition to Pascal and Ramsey, Season 1 also stars Gabriel Luna, Anna Torv, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett, Nick Offerman, Melanie Lynskey, Storm Reid, Merle Dandridge, Jeffrey Pierce, Lamar Johnson, Keivonn Woodard, Graham Greene, Elaine Miles, Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker.

“I’m so grateful to Neil Druckmann and HBO for our partnership, and I’m even more grateful to the millions of people who have joined us on this journey,” said executive producer Mazin. “The audience has given us the chance to continue, and as a fan of the characters and world Neil and Naughty Dog created, I couldn’t be more ready to dive back in.”

The Last of Us is written and executive produced by Mazin and Druckmann. The series is a co-production with Sony Pictures Television.

Selena Gomez: The Queen of Social Media

Posted on February 4, 2018 by Tom Castaneda

Selena Gomez is officially the Queen of Social Media…

The 25-year-old Mexican singer/actress tops Deadline.com’s Top 25 Social Media Star Power Chart, which ranks the top stars across the big three social media platforms of Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Deadline partnered with RelishMIX to pull together the stats for the chart.

Gomez, with a social media universe (SMU) of 250M, ranked No. 1, having added 53 million followers/fans in the last year.

Gomez is the top star in Instagram with 132.9 million, and she has 61.8 followers on Facebook and 56.2 million followers on Twitter.

Meanwhile, Jennifer Lopez rose up two notches to No. 6 on the overall list.

The actress/singer has been busy with Shades of Blue returning on NBC, World of Dance and the romantic comedy feature Second Act.

Lopez has 71.9 million followers on Instagram, 44.9 million followers on Facebook and 76.4 million followers on Twitter.