If you’ve been trudging around New York and or the Internet like a perpetual Grinch-like character — I consider all of us Grinch like characters, in this huge scheme called life — you may have noticed some omnipresent ads that simply read 4:44. Just three numbers, in black, on a coral or millennial pink or otherwise colored background. But what does it mean?
Many at first guessed that it had something to do with Tidal, with Internet slueths and frequent Reddit users tracing the mysterious ads back to the site. Some people thought the numbers were teasing a new Jay Z album — but with twin saviors on the way, he definitely does not have time for that right now.
Now, we can finally stop the guesswork. Tidal gave a huge, mysterious hint to the meaning of 4:44 with a trailer that aired during the NBA Finals on Wednesday night.
So, what is 4:44? It’s a surprise film featuring your faves: Mahershala Ali, Lupita Nyong’o and Danny Glover.
Excited to bring @Sprint customers exclusive content through our partnership with @TIDALHiFi – more news coming tomorrow!! pic.twitter.com/YIbZ4h5Zoq
— MarceloClaure (@marceloclaure) June 8, 2017
The film is in a partnership with Sprint, who took partial ownership of Tidal in January. It appears to be exclusive content for Sprint customers, and if you know anybody that is both a Sprint customer and a Tidal customer, well. I guess you know the only person who will have access to this.
It’ll be a little risque too, maybe: The project reportedly has an NC-17 rating, so I’m hoping for some mature themes. The trailer itself mostly just shows Ali in his element, half-clothed and hitting a punching bag and making sure we all know his testosterone levels are dangerously high. Danny Glover kind of lurks in the shadows, full of — sorrow? remorse? I don’t know. He could very well just be playing a dude that is really hungry.
No word on what the film is actually about, but I think we can all agree that having three Black Oscar winners in one movie — even if it’s for Tidal — is a very good thing.
