Instagram celebrates its latest milestone by letting you add music to your Story

Instagram Stories has blown through another big milestone. The nearly two-year-old feature now boasts 400 million daily users, the company announced on Thursday. 

To celebrate, the app is adding a feature that's likely to generate a lot of excitement among its Stories-loving users: the ability to add musical soundtracks to your posts.

SEE ALSO: Instagram on desktop is way better for being a creep

The feature, which is rolling out to iOS and Android today, lets users add music to Stories via a new music sticker, which will appear next to GIF, location, and other sticker add-ons. Instagram says its library has thousands of songs available, and you can listen to previews before you decide to add them to your post. Read more...

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from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/28/instagram-stories-400-million-music-in-stories/
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Upgrade your summer music festival game with these stylish finds

Sure, it’s one hundred and twelve degrees in the shade and you’ve been elbowing your way to the front of the stage for two hours now — but it’s festival season! Time to brave the heat, the dust, the crowds. It’s all worth it to see a dozen of your favorite bands alongside a few thousand of your closest friends.

To make sure you look and feel your best — you know, just in case you end up ‘gramming it — we’re bringing you our top picks for festival season. With millions of brand new, Buy It Now items from top-rated sellers, eBay makes finding your new favorite things super easy, all with the eBay Money Back Guarantee. Just click the shopping tags in the shoppable images below to buy our curated festival picks now.  Read more...

More about Supported, Ebay, Music Festivals, Bonnaroo, and Lollapalooza

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/28/music-festival-fashion-upgrades/
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Sleep under the stars with these easy-to-pack camping essentials

Tessa Thompson says she's attracted to men and women. Happy pride!

It's not officially Pride month until a well-loved celebrity comes out as some kind of queer.

In a new interview with Porter, actress Tessa Thompson says that she is attracted to both men and women. When asked about her alleged romantic relationship with Janelle Monáe, Thompson chose to be more circumspect.

SEE ALSO: 13 songs that should be your next Pride anthem

"I can take things for granted because of my family – it’s so free and you can be anything that you want to be. I’m attracted to men and also to women," Thompson told the publication.

Of her relationship with Monáe, Thompson then added: "If I bring a woman home, [or] a man, we don’t even have to have the discussion … That was something I was conscientious of in terms of this declaration around Janelle and myself. I want everyone else to have that freedom and support that I have from my loved ones. But so many people don’t. So, do I have a responsibility to talk about that? Do I have a responsibility to say in a public space that this is my person?” Read more...

More about Lgbtq, Janelle Monae, Coming Out, Tessa Thompson, and Culture

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/tessa-thompson-comes-out/
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All the Pride merch that tried just a little too hard this year

This year, perhaps more than any other, American corporations want the LGBTQ community to know that they're their friends. Their best friends, really. 

The only thing they ask for in return is our undying brand loyalty.

2018 was a particularly grating year for corporations who like to demonstrate their commitment to the queer community with rainbow shot glasses and flashy donations to LGBTQ nonprofits. Week after week, my inbox has been flooded with PR pitches to check out the latest gay vodka or discounted queer doughnuts (because gay people have been discriminated against in the...doughnut-sphere?) Read more...

More about Watercooler, Lgbtq Pride, Culture, and Identities

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/pride-merch-tried-too-hard-2018/
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How to get the most out of Amazon Prime Day 2018

Prime Day is a marathon, not a sprint.

Actually, compared to the past three years, Prime Day 2018 is looking to be an intense triathlon. While the sales have gone a few hours over 24 in the past, there's speculation that there will be nearly 40 hours of deals this year. HELP.

SEE ALSO: Which tablet should you get? We compare the iPad, Fire HD, Kindle, and more

Amazon hasn't officially announced when Prime Day will be exactly, but our knowledge of past Prime Days led us to believe that July 10 could be the big shebang. But then, after an apparent leak from the UK, there's now talk that Prime Day 2018 will fall on July 17. Read more...

More about Amazon Prime, Prime Day, Mashable Shopping, Shopping Amazon, and Shopping Fun

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/prime-day-survival-guide/
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Now you can see all of Apple's hidden tweets

Apple has reinvented what it means to be a Twitter lurker. 

The company's Twitter profile makes it look like the tech giant does absolutely nothing on the platform: Apple has never tweeted, not one single time, and it follows zero accounts. 

But thanks to Twitter's new ad transparency tool, we can now see that Apple is actually prolific around the globe — in promoted tweets advertising its products. 

SEE ALSO: Twitter's ad 'Transparency Center' still leaves us with a very big problem

On Friday, the fan blog 9to5Mac took advantage of Twitter's ads transparency tool to find just what messages Apple wants to get out there. Primarily, Apple really wants the people of Twitter to get #BehindTheMac. You can see all of Apple's promoted tweets here.  Read more...

More about Twitter, Apple, Advertising, Ads, and Transparency

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/apple-promoted-tweets/
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Carrie Gracie donates backdated BBC pay to help other women fighting for equality

Carrie Gracie — the BBC journalist who resigned after learning she was paid 50 percent less than her male colleagues — has donated her backdated pay from the BBC to other women fighting for equality. 

SEE ALSO: BBC journalist quits after discovering she earns 50% less than male counterparts

In a joint statement, the BBC and Carrie Gracie announced they had "reached an agreement to resolve their differences." Per the statement, the BBC has apologised to Gracie for underpaying her, and she has received backdated pay. 

In January, Gracie resigned her post after discovering what her male colleagues were being paid. "With great regret, I have left my post as China Editor to speak out publicly on a crisis of trust at the BBC," wrote Gracie at the time.   Read more...

More about Uk, Bbc, Gender Equality, Culture, and Work Life

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/carrie-gracie-donates-back-pay/
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Never lose your keys again with these handy gadgets

No matter our lifestyle choices, there's one thing we've all got in common: The frustrating and perpetual search for sets of keys — car keys, apartment keys, mailbox keys — which you know for a fact you put on the counter five minutes ago. 

Good news: You don't need to splurge to add some convenience to your life. We've rounded up three great choices for every kind of key-loser. Just click on the shopping tags in the shoppable images below to Buy It Now from eBay's top-rated sellers. Here's to no more climbing through your neighbor's window and down the fire escape to get into your apartment. Read more...

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from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/key-tracking-gadgets/
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Turn your apartment into an urban oasis with these DIY home gardening products

Your home is your sanctuary. Your choice of decor has an impact upon the overall energy of your space, and adding a little greenery is one of the easiest ways to truly transform a house or apartment into a home. In fact, studies have shown that indoor plants may even reduce psychological and physiological stress.

eBay has millions of brand new, Buy It Now items for turning your apartment into the urban oasis it's meant to be. Just click the shopping tags on the shoppable images below to buy.  With top-rated sellers and the eBay Money Back Guarantee, there's no reason not to treat yourself. Get your green thumb going with our curated picks below. Read more...

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from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/home-gardening-gadgets/
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Drake confirmed that he has a son on his new album, proving Pusha T right

The Drake and Pusha T beef may be old news, but we're still feeling the heat from fiery allegations stirred up during the back-and-forth — and now we finally have answers.

In multiples tracks off his new album Scorpion, Drake confirms what investigative journalist/rapper Pusha T revealed on his diss track "The Story of Adidon": Drake does indeed have a son. 

SEE ALSO: Drake's 'I'm upset' video is basically one massive 'Degrassi' reunion

The first mention of his firstborn comes on Scorpion's fourth track, "Emotionless."

"I wasn’t hiding my kid from the world / I was hiding the world from my kid / From empty souls who just wake up and looked to debate / Until you starin' at your seed, you can never relate," he raps on the track.  Read more...

More about Drake, Pusha T, Scorpion, Culture, and Celebrities

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/drake-has-a-son-scorpion/
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Facebook 'split memes' are driving everyone crazy

You may have noticed an odd new trend over the past couple of months on some of largest meme-sharing Facebook pages. 

Run a quick search on “split memes” on Twitter, Reddit, or Facebook, and you’ll find dozens of posts spanning the past two months from people all being driven crazy. The memes on Facebook are being split in two! 

Am I the only one that’s irritated that the memes on Facebook are videos split in half? Like wtf why

— lyssaaaaa✨ (@alyssacraig_16) June 12, 2018

Whoever started the trend of Facebook photos/memes split down the middle honestly deserves to fall down a flight of stairs

— Twenty Struggles (@twentystruggles) June 2, 2018 Read more...

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from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/facebook-split-memes/
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The NES Classic is back. Here's where to get it.

The NES Classic Edition is back from the dead.

A handful of major retailers have NES Classics back in stock starting Friday, over a year after Nintendo's throwback console was discontinued in April 2017. The console, which contains 30 games from the Nintendo Entertainment System like Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Pac Man, and Mega Man 2, is being sold for prices ranging from $60 to $100.

SEE ALSO: All 30 NES Classic Edition games, reviewed (in 30 words)

Retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, and Walmart are peddling NES Classics again after Nintendo announced the console's return in May. Most sellers still have them in stock, at least for now, and Walmart will begin their online orders at 1 p.m. ET. Read more...

More about Nintendo, Nes Classic Edition, Entertainment, and Gaming

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/nes-classic-where-to-buy/
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Meditative Video Games to Play When You're Extremely Stoned

Read more...More about Gaming, Marijuana, Video Games, Mashable Reels, and Entertainment

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/reels-meditative-video-games-to-play-stoned/
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Obama says we are "right to be concerned" but to focus on "hope." WE'RE TRYING.

After a prolonged period of silence, former President Barack Obama spoke at a Democratic National Committee Fundraiser in California last night and offered a few words of wisdom.

"You are right to be concerned," Obama said. As Politico reported, he cautioning the crowd: "Do not wait for the perfect message, don’t wait to feel a tingle in your spine because you’re expecting politicians to be so inspiring and poetic and moving that somehow, 'OK, I’ll get off my couch after all and go spend the 15-20 minutes it takes for me to vote."

SEE ALSO: Barack Obama finally breaks his silence on immigration controversy, and it's kind of a let down Read more...

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from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/president-obama-trump-comments/
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Amazon deals for June 29: Save on Funko Pop, Fire 10 tablets, Ecovacs robot vacuums, and more

With the weekend here, Amazon has deals on products to improve your home and kitchen, toys for the kids, and ways to upgrade your leisure time with gear for the outdoors.

The weather keeps getting hotter, so save on air conditioning units from RolliCool, Whynter, and Madoats, plus get deals on vacuums and pressure cookers from Housmile. If you're planning a fishing trip in the future, you can save 25% on select fishing gear from Piscifun. And you can't have a trip out to the wilderness without a good survival knife and BladeMate is offering a highly rated one for 55% off its retail price. 

If you have kids, you can save 62% on issues of National Geographic Kids, while Melissa & Doug has a Disney Princess wooden stamp set on sale. You can also save 23% on select Funko Pop Marvel figures, namely Captain America and the Hulkbuster armor, as well as a fun basketball ball pit from FoxPlay. Read more...

More about Fishing, Mashable Shopping, Amazon Shopping, Funko Pop, and Lifestyle

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/amazon-daily-deals-funko-pop-fire-tablet/
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How one woman found an unlikely support network in the pimple popping community

Popular as they are, a pimple popping platform is probably the last place you'd expect to find a support network. But a shared love of the strange hobby brought a community of people together to support a fellow popper through her months-long wound recovery. 

SEE ALSO: Navel stones to ingrown toenails: Can you handle YouTube's grossest videos?

r/popping, a subreddit for "pictures and videos about cysts and pimples," has 144,000 faithful zit popping enthusiasts. And it's where one Redditor — who asked to be referred to by her username, Slamhood, for this piece — found the community she needed while recovering from a horrible bone infection. Read more...

More about Reddit, Pimple Popping, Culture, and Web Culture

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/pimple-popping-support-network-slamhood/
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A tiny satellite could be the key to cleaning up our space trash

Did you know that space is littered with trash? It's a growing worry for experts — and for all of us. Fortunately, there are projects like RemoveDebris, which could be the key to cleaning up our act.  Read more...

More about Space, Climate, Nasa, Mashable Video, and Environment

from Mashable https://mashable.com/2018/06/29/space-junk-removedebris/
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