Author: NY TIMES

Without immediate confirmation from Drake or his representatives, fans traded theories online about the mixing quality of the song, dug for clues from the lyrics and compared it with other Drake tracks. Eventually, a new version was released and the rapper began posting oblique references to it on his Instagram, satisfying most internet sleuths that it was the real deal.In many ways, a rap beef is fertile ground for A.I. impersonation. The songs are usually not released through a rapper’s record label; they often appear online in early or unfinished forms, and they generally prize insults and barbs over songcraft.…

Ukrainian officials said a Russian airstrike on Monday evening killed five people and wounded about 30 others in Odesa, a southern Ukrainian city that has been a regular target of Russian missiles and drones trying to destroy its port infrastructure.Videos and photos showed lifeless and bloodied bodies of civilians lying on a seafront promenade not known to be close to any strategic site like military buildings or grain storehouses.Ukrainian authorities on Tuesday accused Russia of using cluster munitions — a controversial and widely banned weapon that can often cause indiscriminate harm to civilians — in the attack.Andriy Kostin, Ukraine’s prosecutor…

Following months of complaints from fans and players, Nike is expected to change some elements of its new MLB uniforms before the start of the 2025 season, according to a memo obtained Sunday.The MLB Players Association memo to players noted that after weeks of conversations with the league and its official uniform supplier, Nike, the league “received[d] “Signs” will make the following changes: the jersey top will return to larger lettering, and the pants will return to the previous cut options adopted in 2023, seam count and higher quality zippers.Furthermore, as Nike previously stated CompetitorThe memo states that Nike is…

Having mixed feelings about return to office? Not sure what to wear? Ralph Lauren has a solution for that.On Monday night paparazzi were camped out in front of the nondescript glass-door building at Madison Avenue and 58th Street where Mr. Lauren has his storied headquarters, there to record the arrivals of Jessica Chastain, Kerry Washington and Glenn Close, among others. The reason: Mr. Lauren’s latest … well, not show, exactly. More like episode in the long-running series he has been directing called “This Is My Life.”For the last few years (even before Covid), Mr. Lauren has been framing his collections…

Elon Musk has gutted the part of Tesla responsible for building electric vehicle charging stations, sowing uncertainty about the future of the largest and most reliable U.S. charging network.The layoffs of several hundred Tesla employees, which many of them posted about on social media on Tuesday, raised questions about deals that Mr. Musk, Tesla’s chief executive, struck with the leaders of General Motors, Ford Motor and other automakers last year allowing cars made by other companies to use Tesla Supercharger stations.Tesla’s agreements with other makers of electric cars assured buyers that they would be able to find fast chargers on…

Amazon reported its highest first-quarter profit on Tuesday as it continued to wring efficiencies out of its retail business and recharge growth in its cloud computing operations.The company was also for the first time on track to have $100 billion in annual cloud computing sales.The company had $143.3 billion in revenue in the first three months of the year, up 13 percent from a year earlier. Profit more than tripled, to $10.4 billion. The results beat analysts’ expectations.“It was a good start to the year across the business, and you can see that in both our customer experience improvements and…

Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, said Tuesday that it was shutting down its health care centers, a network that only last year it said it planned to expand.The retailer said in a blog post that its 51 health centers across five states would close. The centers were next to Supercenter locations. The plans won’t affect the more than 4,600 pharmacies and more than 3,000 vision centers within Walmart stores.Walmart started the health-care clinic initiative in 2019 in Dallas, Ga., with centers providing primary care, labs, X-rays and electrocardiograms, counseling, and dental, optical and hearing services. Many were in smaller towns…

Jessica Pratt’s new album, “Here in the Pitch,” begins with a vintage drum beat, a gently strummed guitar and a lot of vibey room tone — the kind that recalls a wood-paneled studio from 60 years ago. “The chances of a lifetime might be hiding their tricks up my sleeve,” she sings on “Life Is,” in an enchanting melody that rises and falls with ease. “Time is time is time again.”Pratt is 37, and over three albums since 2012, she has become known for seemingly bending time. “A friend of a friend was stunned to find out that Jessica is…

President Biden spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Sunday to discuss the prospects of a possible cease-fire deal to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas, while repeating his warnings about a new Israeli assault on the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, officials said.The call was meant to pave the way for Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, who left Washington just a few hours earlier on Sunday for his latest trip to the Middle East aimed at scaling back the war in Gaza. Mr. Blinken headed to Saudi Arabia, where he will see Egyptian…

Times Insider explains who we are and what we do and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together.Sometime early last year, I stumbled across an article by two scholars that described the rise of the “Green Islam” movement in Indonesia. One phrase in particular stood out: Muslim environmentalists there saw themselves as “khalifahs,” or guardians, of the earth.As the Southeast Asia bureau chief for The New York Times, I knew this was a story I wanted to tell. It melded religion and environmentalism — two themes that I wanted to focus on in my coverage of Indonesia, the…