Latest news with #Sprinter
The South African
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The South African
Central Cee to add UK flavour to the Hey Neighbour music festival
The Hey Neighbour music festival has added UK Rapper Central Cee to the lineup. The skilled lyricist from Shepherd's Bush, London, England, will join a roster of performers, brimming with talent. The UK might arguably be one of the best places for hip hop. Both streams, grime and drill, appear to be more enterprising than the output of nations like America at present. Fans of real rap music found this staggered announcement to be a relief, as someone like Doja Cat is perhaps more of a hip-hop artist than apure rap. Central Cee, or Cench as he is lovingly known by his fans, will take to the stage on Saturday, August 30. He will dispense an array of his global rap hits, which include songs like Sprinter, Doja and Obsessed with You. His charismatic and choppy delivery works well on his albums. Hopefully, this translates well to his stage presence and approach to performance. Hey Neighbour has made a string of announcements over the last couple of days. Along with Central Cee, American R&B sensation Leon Thomas will be on hand with the musings of his impeccable magnum opus, Mutt. Fans are already salivating at the prospect of seeing the New York native dispense the lead and title single from that album. Hey Neighbour also announced that they are condensing their offering to two days instead of three. 'We're switching from a three-day festival to two jam-packed days, meaning the festival dates will be 30-31 August 2025. Yes, we're still bringing awesomeness to the hood,' they said via an Instagram post. They have also provided assurances that the festival will still be a world-class affair. All current ticket holders have been notified of this change by email. The first Hey Neighbour Festival was held two years ago. A string of local and international talents thrilled the crowd. Acts like Tyla, Swedish House Mafia and Kendrick Lamar delivered performances of a high level. This sophomore offering by the same organisers will have to go far and above what fans saw at the first iteration. Not to mention the unfortunate debacle involving exorbitant Uber fares at the end of each day. Hey Neighbour will be held at the Legends Adventure Farm in Pretoria in August of this year. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 11. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
North Wales Live
a day ago
- Automotive
- North Wales Live
Scott Mills launches UK-first podcast
Radio DJ Scott Mills has launched the UK's first podcast for van drivers. The star has partnered with Mercedes-Benz Vans to launch the Under the Bonnet podcast, a series of 30minute episodes in conversation with celebrities and guests to understand what makes Britain's van drivers tick. Scott, 52, whose dad Pete ran a removals company and drove a van, recorded the series discussed everything from his enduring love of service stations to the changing face of van drivers. The series, which has been launched to celebrate 30 years of the Sprinter, also delves into findings from the second annual Mercedes-Benz Vans Under the Bonnet report, which found conversations about potholes have overtaken football as the number one ice-breaker when talking to a stranger. The first episode of the Under the Bonnet podcast sees Scott in conversation with BBC Celebrity MasterChef judge and food critic Grace Dent, who reveals that her guilty pleasure is dining out at a motorway service station. In the second episode Scott opens up about his own mental health challenges as he talks to van driver David Curtis about the mental load of life on the road. The Mercedes-Benz Van Under the Bonnet report reveals 65% of van drivers have suffered from depression or anxiety. Scott said: 'As a child, I spent hours sitting in front of my dad's van, so recording a podcast in a Sprinter wasn't strange for me at all. Having grown up around it, I've seen first hand the invaluable role van drivers play in the UK. I'm proud to bring the Under the Bonnet podcast to the van driver community who work so hard around the clock to keep our businesses moving, our shops stocked and our deliveries made." Iain Forsyth, Managing Director at Mercedes-Benz Vans UK said: 'Scott Mills is the voice of the UK in the mornings so who better to become the voice of our Under the Bonnet podcast as we mark 30 years of the iconic Sprinter van. Since we launched the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter in 1995 the world has changed and so have our van drivers. Back then drivers only had radio for company. Our Under the Bonnet research shows its podcasts they now switch on, so it made sense to create a dedicated podcast just for our drivers that talks to them about the challenges they face day-to-day. 'We're really excited to launch the Under the Bonnet podcast to shine our full beams on the reality of van life.'
Wales Online
a day ago
- Automotive
- Wales Online
Scott Mills launches UK-first podcast
Scott Mills launches UK-first podcast The DJ is intervieiwing celebrities about everything from service stations to potholes Radio DJ Scott Mills has launched the UK's first podcast for van drivers. The star has partnered with Mercedes-Benz Vans to launch the Under the Bonnet podcast, a series of 30minute episodes in conversation with celebrities and guests to understand what makes Britain's van drivers tick. Scott, 52, whose dad Pete ran a removals company and drove a van, recorded the series discussed everything from his enduring love of service stations to the changing face of van drivers. The series, which has been launched to celebrate 30 years of the Sprinter, also delves into findings from the second annual Mercedes-Benz Vans Under the Bonnet report, which found conversations about potholes have overtaken football as the number one ice-breaker when talking to a stranger. The first episode of the Under the Bonnet podcast sees Scott in conversation with BBC Celebrity MasterChef judge and food critic Grace Dent, who reveals that her guilty pleasure is dining out at a motorway service station. In the second episode Scott opens up about his own mental health challenges as he talks to van driver David Curtis about the mental load of life on the road. The Mercedes-Benz Van Under the Bonnet report reveals 65% of van drivers have suffered from depression or anxiety. Scott said: 'As a child, I spent hours sitting in front of my dad's van, so recording a podcast in a Sprinter wasn't strange for me at all. Having grown up around it, I've seen first hand the invaluable role van drivers play in the UK. I'm proud to bring the Under the Bonnet podcast to the van driver community who work so hard around the clock to keep our businesses moving, our shops stocked and our deliveries made." Article continues below Iain Forsyth, Managing Director at Mercedes-Benz Vans UK said: 'Scott Mills is the voice of the UK in the mornings so who better to become the voice of our Under the Bonnet podcast as we mark 30 years of the iconic Sprinter van. Since we launched the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter in 1995 the world has changed and so have our van drivers. Back then drivers only had radio for company. Our Under the Bonnet research shows its podcasts they now switch on, so it made sense to create a dedicated podcast just for our drivers that talks to them about the challenges they face day-to-day. 'We're really excited to launch the Under the Bonnet podcast to shine our full beams on the reality of van life.'
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Zoe Ball's stark warning to Scott Mills when he took over BBC Radio 1 job
Breakfast show host Scott, who took over in January, says Zoe had a few words of wisdom for him before he started Scott Mills has revealed that Zoe Ball gave him a stark warning before he replaced her on BBC Radio 2, telling him: 'It's a lot - you've always got to be on.' Scott, 52, was unveiled as the new Breakfast Show host last year after the shock news Zoe was stepping down after six years at the Radio 2 helm. And in spite of more than two decades of experience on the airwaves, he admitted he still struggles with the pressure to deliver the best show possible. Scott told the Mirror: 'The show is a lot, it's hard work. It's a treadmill every day. 'I remember when Zoe finished, she said to me: 'Look, doing breakfast on Radio 2 is quite a lot. It's quite demanding, and you've just always got to be on.' She was right. The amount of guests we have - it's continuous. When she said it to me, I was like: 'I'm ready'. And I am, it's my happy place. 'But of course there's pressure. I think that if you're not feeling any pressure, then you probably shouldn't be doing that job. But that's good. I want to be at the top of my game, and I have that inbuilt into me, I always put pressure on myself. I'm not getting mad pressure from the bosses at all, far from it. But I want to do the best show I can possibly do. 'There is an old saying - I don't know if it's an acting phrase - but it's basically: 'You're only as good as your last show.' And I know it's quite old school, but I do think that. If I've had a bad show - for reasons a listener maybe wouldn't even notice, like maybe I tripped over my words - I really get annoyed. You can get beaten up about it.' Scott has opened up in the past about his struggles with mental health, admitting he grappled with intense anxiety and depression as a young man. And speaking this week on new Mercedes-Benz Vans podcast Under the Bonnet, he revealed he still experiences dark periods - but uses exercise to help him cope. Scott, who is hosting the podcast, said: 'Exercise is definitely something I lean into to help my mental health. I've really noticed when I don't do it. Now at school, I was the last to be picked at sport - it's not my thing, but it's not about that. It's about that feeling I get after I've been, it's a bit of a high that you get. And it's (exercise) what I try to do now after the Breakfast Show, because I've been in some low places before with depression and anxiety over the years. 'Thankfully not in recent years, but I know if a dark time is coming - you can just feel it. So I honestly believe that exercise has helped me know, and I make time for it.' The Under the Bonnet podcast is the UK's first exclusively for van drivers. The series, recorded in a specially adapted Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van, has been launched to celebrate 30 years of the Sprinter and discuss the Under the Bonnet report, which shows how van drivers have become a barometer for modern Britain. The report has found that the average van driver has less than five conversations a day, compared to the average person's 27 conversations. And 80% credited improvements in their mental health to team sport. Scott went on: 'I could really relate to that because of my own experiences. Some of the drivers I spoke to were telling me about being on the road for 20 hours at a time, and how lonely they felt. 'And it reminded me of when I was working my way up in radio, as a presenter. My first job was on radio in Southampton when I was 16 and then I got asked by a radio station in Bristol if I wanted to go there. So I moved to Bristol not knowing one person. And apart from when I was recording my show, I spent all of my time completely on my own. And then I moved from Bristol to Manchester and I mean, I'd never been north of Birmingham - I was a proper Southerner. 'So once again, you uproot your life, you rent a flat and you don't know anyone. And this is, like, early 1990s, so mobiles weren't really a thing. You weren't really in touch with people, you know, day-to-day. I can remember my Mum coming to visit me, and crying because I was so lonely. She asked if I was going to put a Christmas tree up, and I told her I would, but that no-one would see it. It was a very isolating time. "I made those moves to better my career, but at the back of my head I was always thinking: 'At what cost?' Obviously, it's all worked out great, but you don't know that as you're doing it. Now people will say to me: 'Oh, you're on the Radio 2 Breakfast Show,' but they don't realise that I've spent years trying to get up that ladder. "To be honest, it still blows my mind that this has happened to me. It's been a wild four months since I took over the show, and we're only just getting started.' Off the airwaves, Scott is also celebrating his first wedding anniversary this month, after he married husband Sam Vaughan last year. And revealing plans to whisk Sam away to celebrate at their Spanish wedding venue, he told how their partnership works because they help each other. He went on: 'Our first year has been great. And I'll tell you why it's been great, because it's just so easy. Me and him are just a great team - we just help each other out all the time, which is the way it should be. It's been a busy time lately, with Eurovision, etc. 'But I love it, and I love coming home after bonkers days, and everything just being calm and normal - that peace of mind that someone is always there for you. I adore it. 'We were chatting about this last night, and I was like: 'That's been a pretty good first year of marriage.' And I mean, it's whipped by - it's gone by in a flash. 'This weekend I am taking him back to the place where we got married - in Spain. So he doesn't know this yet, but tomorrow, we are going there. 'Right now, I'm the happiest I've ever, ever, ever, ever been. I really feel like all the stars have aligned for me, and I couldn't be happier. I'm literally having a ball.' Scott Mills is hosting the Mercedes-Benz Vans podcast Under the Bonnet, the UK's first podcast exclusively for van drivers. The podcast has been launched to mark the 30th anniversary of the Sprinter van and to discuss the findings of the Under the Bonnet report.
Hypebeast
27-05-2025
- Business
- Hypebeast
What "Rare Air" Means to Jordan Brand
As a Sprinter van pulled into the parking lot of a nondescript single-level office building in Beaverton, Oregon, the mood amongst the journalists ensconced in its darkly-tinted windows was one of the fabledNikeglobal headquarters? No lake? No buildings named after athletes? No winding pathways populated with on-the-go employees and Swoosh-ified bikes? But, a quickly delivered fact broke the fog of confusion. The Department of Nike Archives (D-NA for short) isn't actually on the Nike campus; instead, it's located a few blocks away, and its indistinctive nature is by design. Like the old saying goes, it's what's on the inside that counts, and inside this faceless building lies a vast treasure: Nike andJordan Brand's entire archive. It's an exceedingly rare circumstance that outside parties are allowed into D-NA. The reason a small crew of media members was permitted to pass the gates and be hustled in through a thick door, however, was to get hands-on time with Jordan Brand's 'Rare Air' collection, specifically the forthcoming 'Rare Air'Air Jordan 3,Air Jordan 4,Air Jordan 11and its accompanying apparel collection — all backed by archival gems, ranging fromMichael Jordan's PEs to perfectly-preserved Nike catalogs from the '80s to show the direct inspirations behind the designs. 'Rare Air' was created around a tagline of 'easy to miss, hard to forget,' and, although the concept was originally invented to support a singleAir Jordan 1pack, it received such vast internal support that it grew into a full line. 'Rare Air' footwear and apparel draws inspiration from the original design process for Jordan Brand's iconic silhouettes in the late '80s, a back-and-forth between brand and supplier with multiple rounds of revisions that ultimately led to the label's final retail design. It communicates this inspiration through a multitude of 'if you know, you know' design tweaks that nod to both the imperfect sampling process of the time as well as more niche inspirations like early production mishaps andRare Air, a mid-'90s magazine that provided an intimate look at Michael Jordan's life during his first retirement from theNBA. 'We wanted these items to feel like something MJ would have worn or played in during the '80s,' said Terrance Harvey, Jordan Brand's senior manager of global footwear. On the 'Rare Air' collection'sAir Jordan 3, this inspiration manifests through details like flipped Nike Air branding on heel tabs, suede and nubuck textiles in place of Jordan Brand's classic elephant print, and even artificially-aged midsoles. Other 'Rare Air' silhouettes, like the above-mentionedAir Jordan 4andAir Jordan 11, reward discovery in their own ways. The former, for example, features a number of Velcro-backed tongue tags for personalization options, and two percent of its retail release pairs will feature gold text on the Velcro patch, while the Air Jordan 11 equips its own set of 'pre-production' details like a 'Jordan' wordmark creeping up the eyelets. Though even a casual Jordan fan could likely catch these standout details on one or two glimpses, there's more than enough deep dive storytelling for the 'heads here as well. Harvey notes that while studying samples and original pairs in the D-NA roster, he continuously noticed details like off-sized logos, missing lines in the famed 'Wings' logo, and the registered trademark logo conspicuously absent from tongue tags. 'We probably couldn't get a detail like a missing trademark past our legal department these days,' he noted with a chuckle. 'So we had to ask ourselves: how do we commemorate the beauty in these imperfections through a modern lens?' The ethos expands to the apparel, which features pre-distressed details, cracked logos, inside-out seams, and more, as if pieces had been pulled straight out of a forgotten shipping container from 1988. Visible blue tags on tees and hoodies alike salute a made-in-Japan Nike apparel line from the late '80s, while the ball-and-wings logo is usually saved for collaborative apparel with A-list partners likeOff-White™andJust Don. 'We wanted to provide a sense of discovery with this collection's details,' said Shelley Yang, an expert designer (yes, that's her official title) at Jordan Brand. The collection is also an attempt to thread the proverbial needle, providing offerings with enough details to satiate the core Jordan Brand customer who's steeped in Air Jordan history and grew up with Michael Jordan as an omnipresent figure in their life, but also enough of a 'discovery aspect' to hit a target demographic that, being younger, may not have the same deeply personal connection with the man behind the gear — a combination of nostalgia and Internet lore around Jordan Brand products. The energy behind the 'Rare Air' designs, apparel, and footwear alike comes from this multitude of frictions and delightful contradictions. After all, it's surprising to see an intentional embrace of imperfection from a brand that flows down from arguably the most well-known perfectionist in sports history, but this friction doesn't separate the product from its purpose. Instead, it humanizes the purpose — a relentless pursuit of greatness — in a straight-from-the-source manner. 'Everybody knows that MJ is the greatest, but his story of becoming the greatest took a lot of trial and error,' said OJ Khoury, a member of the brand creative team for Jordan Brand's women's line. 'That leaning into imperfections for growth is a universal truth, and we feel it's reflected in the product.' The Air Jordan 3 'Rare Air' and its corresponding apparel will release May 30, while the Air Jordan 4 'Rare Air' in black will release this summer (the white pair pictured above is a sample that's not slated for a retail release). The Air Jordan 11 'Rare Air' is slated for a holiday 2025 drop.
