The month of April came and went quickly but still managed to give us some excitement from a pop-culture perspective. Catch up on anything you may have missed right here.

UConn Wins the Madness
The annual basketball frenzy known as March Madness came to an end on Monday, April 3 in Houston, TX, with the UConn Huskies defeating the San Diego State Aztecs 76-59. This tournament marked UConn’s fifth title since 1999 and their second in Houston and fourth in Texas.

Super Mario Bros. Movie
Fans of the iconic video game series and characters (which have been around since the ‘80s), flocked to movie theatres in April for the newest adaptation of The Super Mario Bros. The film was released on April 5 and received mixed reviews from film critics, however, audience reception was more positive. To date, the movie has grossed over $876.4 million worldwide and is the highest-grossing film of 2023. In addition, the film set box-office records for the biggest worldwide opening weekend for an animated film and is the highest-grossing film based on a video game. Due to the success of the film from a box office standpoint, Nintendo has stated they would make more films based on their properties.

NBA Playoffs
The NBA playoffs kicked off on April 15 and the season is expected to end on June 18. Either the Boston Celtics or Philadelphia 76ers are predicted to be one of the teams representing the Eastern Conference whereas the Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, or Phoenix Suns are most likely to represent the Western Conference.

Coachella
The annual music festival occurred over two weekends (April 14-16 and April 21-23) and was headlined by Bad Bunny, Blackpink, Frank Ocean, and Blink-182. On the first weekend of the festival, Frank Ocean announced that he would exclude his performance from the YouTube live stream and then took the stage an hour later than scheduled. Less than an hour later, he abruptly ended the set, stating that the festival had reached its curfew. The following Wednesday, April 19, two days before the second weekend of the festival, Ocean pulled out of performing altogether based on a doctor’s report of two fractures and a sprain in his left leg. Organizers of the festival scrambled to find a replacement and settled on Four Tet, Skrillex, and Fred Again, as well as bumping up Blink-12 to Sunday night.

May Day Incoming
As they say, April showers bring May flowers, so stay tuned for what’s blooming next month when we return with another round-up of all things happening in pop culture.