Morning! While you were sleeping (or staying up to binge-watch Friends for the tenth time, or pulling an all-nighter in the library), a few things went down that you’ll probably want to know about. So grab a cup of coffee, settle in, and get scrolling.
Rumor Has It
Ariana Grande just keep the hits coming.
The pop singer, 26, dropped her new single, “Boyfriend,” on August 2, and the new bop, which is a collaboration with pop duo Social House, is all about love, trust and the fear of commitment.
In the new video, Grande and Social House member Mikey Foster declare themselves to be “train wrecks” while singing about a budding relationship that they don’t want to define, MTV reports. Meanwhile, they also don’t want each other to be with other people.
Their infatuation with one another ends up resulting in the two of them fantasizing about inflicting bodily harm on their romantic rivals, like Grande imagining shooting an arrow at another girl. Like, whoa. Eventually, though, the two end up giving in to their passion for one another and practically destroy a bathroom while making out.
Check it out for yourself:
However, like all of Grande’s music, there is a deeply personal message under the bass-driven beat.
Prior to the release of her new music video, Grande took to Twitter on Thursday to chat with fans about the “nostalgic bop,” Entertainment Tonight reports.
“I feel like this song captures a common theme in the lives of so many people i know!” the pop singer wrote in response to a fan who asked about the inspiration behind the song. “People want to feel love but don’t want to define their relationship & have trouble fully committing or trusting or allowing themselves to fully love someone. even tho they want to.”
well, i feel like this song captures a common theme in the lives of so many people i know ! people want to feel love but don’t want to define their relationship & have trouble fully committing or trusting or allowing themselves to fully love someone. even tho they want to. ? https://t.co/28CfLoJseu
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) August 1, 2019
“We wanted to make something uplifting that captures that feeling of being afraid to take the leap & trust, being afraid of being hurt or feeling like you won’t be enough for that person … but also how it feels to have a crippling crush on someone,” she continued.
right ?
we wanted to make something uplifting that captures that feeling of being afraid to take the leap & trust, being afraid of being hurt or feeling like you won’t be enough for that person … but also how it feels to have a crippling crush on someone. ? #Boyfriendtonight https://t.co/IHQ3cRC9iy— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) August 2, 2019
The singer told a fan Thursday that her favorite part of filming the video for her new song was all of “the stunts & scooties reactions to everything.”
Either way, it sounds like “Boyfriend” will definitely be a serious song-of-the-late-summer hit.
News You Can Eat
For those of you that don’t have your National Mustard Day plans in order yet, there is no need to worry, because French’s has you covered…with mustard ice cream, that is.
Yep, you read that correctly. In celebration of National Mustard Day (which is on August 3, in case you still need to mark it on your calendar), French’s enlisted Coolhaus, an ice cream and cookie sandwich company, to develop the interesting concoction.
“August 3rd is National Mustard Day, and after 115 years of using mustard to add something bold and unique to standard fare, we thought, ‘What about ice cream?’” French’s said in a statement.
The team over at Delish had an opportunity to taste the new flavor (yay?) and found it to not be so bad. Saying it had a nice, creamy texture, the editors were surprised to find that the mustard ice cream actually tasted strangely French vanilla-y.
Perhaps once you get past the shockingly bright yellow color, the taste isn’t too bad?
“French’s brought such a unique challenge to us in that they wanted the mustard ice cream to really showcase their brand from a taste and visual perspective, but also be truly delicious, decadent and creamy ice cream,” Coolhaus CEO Natasha Case said. “We used their real mustard blended into our creamy base, but we rounded out the savory qualities with the sweetness of cake batter to tie it all together. The result is a multi-layered experience of flavor that is thought-provoking.”
If you’re interested in trying out the flavor for yourself, the bright yellow-hued dessert will be available for a limited time in Los Angeles and New York City, PEOPLE reports. The Culver City Coolhaus location will serve scoops from August 2 – 4 and August 9 – 11.
According to ABC News, French’s will also have an official mustard ice cream truck that will be making stops in Manhattan and Brooklyn on August 1 – 2 and the Hamptons on August 3.
So, there you go. Happy National Mustard Day, everybody!
Then This Happened
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) posted a picture of herself alongside House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in Ghana Thursday, using the opportunity to fire back at President Donald Trump’s recent attacks against four congresswomen of color.
Pelosi “didn’t just make arrangements to send me back, she went back with me,” Omar, who was born in Somalia and became a U.S. citizen as a teenager, tweeted, sharing pictures of the two congresswomen in front of the Door of No Return, a site in the Ghanian city Elmina where Africans who were enslaved had their last glimpse of home before they were, sadly, sent away to enter a life of slavery, HuffPost reports.
They said “send her back” but Speaker @SpeakerPelosi didn’t just make arrangements to send me back, she went back with me ✊?
So grateful for the honor to return to Mother Africa with the @TheBlackCaucus and commemorate The Year of Return! #Doorofreturn #Ghana pic.twitter.com/0yVBLcAEs5
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 1, 2019
“So grateful for the honor to return to Mother Africa with the @TheBlackCaucus and commemorate The Year of Return!,” Omar added.
Omar’s comment is a jab at Trump’s recent remarks that four congresswomen — Omar and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) — should “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came.”
All four lawmakers that Trump targeted are U.S. citizens.
At a campaign rally days after Trump’s remarks, the crowd erupted into chants of “Send her back!” after Trump began to attack the congresswomen in his speech.
The rally chant drew widespread denunciation from Democratic lawmakers and some Republicans.
Omar is visiting Ghana this week along with Pelosi and the 13 members of the Congressional Black Caucus to observe the 400th anniversary of the arrival of enslaved Africans in America, The Hill reports.
Pelosi delivered an address to the Ghanaian Parliament on Wednesday, marking her the first Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives to ever address the Ghanaian legislative body, HuffPost reports.
Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), the chairwoman of the caucus, called the visit a “profoundly significant trip” and added that Pelosi’s presence “says a great deal about the historical ties between our countries and reaffirms our commitment to Ghana and to the continent of Africa.”
Happy Thoughts
Happy National Ice Cream Sandwich Day!