entertainment blog
Taylor Swift Must Face Trial in “Shake It Off” Lawsuit, Judge Rules
Taylor Swift has lost her final attempt to avoid a trial in the copyright lawsuit filed against her by the songwriters behind 3LW’s ‘Playas Gon’ Play,” Rolling Stone reports. Sean Hall and Nathan Butler have accused the singer of lifting the chorus from the 2001 song in her hit “Shake It Off.” U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald first denied Swift’s motion to issue a summary judgement in her favor in December, which prompted Swift to file a motion to reconsider. That motion has now been denied, with Judge Fitzgerald noting, “I still think there’s a genuine issue of material fact in part because of the expert opinion.” The case is set to go to trial January 17, 2023. Pitchfork has reached out to representatives for Swift for comment. Hall and Butler originally filed the “Shake It Off”...
PnB Rock’s Death Mourned by Offset, Nicki Minaj, Russ & More: ‘He Was Gentle and Kind’
The hip-hop community is taking a moment to remember PnB Rock on Monday (Sept. 12) after the rapper was fatally shot at Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles in Los Angeles. He was 30. The rapper was dining at the restaurant with his girlfriend, Stephanie Sibounheuang — who posted and then deleted a location-tagged photo of the couple’s meal on her Instagram Story — when a shooting occurred at 1:23 p.m. PT, the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to Billboard. The Los Angeles Times reported the suspect “brandished a firearm inside the restaurant and demanded items from the victim.” Rock was reportedly targeted for his jewelry. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news PnB Rock (real name: Rakim Hasheem Allen) was transported to the hospital and pron...
Lizzo Tearfully Accepts Her First Emmy for ‘Watch Out For The Big Grrrls’
Lizzo is officially halfway to EGOT status, taking home the outstanding competition program Emmy on Monday night (Sept. 12) for her Amazon Prime Video series, Watch Out for the Big Grrrls. “I’m very emotional,” she said through tears on stage when accepting her award, standing alongside her Watch Out for the Big Grrrls collaborators. “The trophy is nice, but my emotion is for these people who are on this stage with me. The stories that they share are not that unique. They just don’t get the platform. Telling stories, let’s tell more stories.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “When I was a little girl, all I wanted was to see me in the media. Someone fat like me, Black like me, beautiful like me,” she recalled, before adding with a laugh ...
John Legend Performs ‘Pieces’ for Moving 2022 Emmys In Memoriam Segment
John Legend took the stage at the 2022 Primetime Emmy Awards on Monday night (Sept. 12) to deliver a moving, emotional rendition of “Pieces” from his freshly released eighth studio album, Legend. The song was performed during the In Memoriam segment, which paid respects to many of the performers and behind-the-scenes players who lent their talent to our TV screens over the years, including Betty White, Vin Scully, Bob Saget, Nichelle Nichols, James Caan, Louie Anderson, Anne Heche, Ray Liotta, Sidney Poitier and more. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Legend has performed on the Emmys in the past. In 2018, he joined Kate McKinnon, Kenan Thompson, Tituss Burgess, Kristen Bell, Sterling K. Brown, Ricky Martin, Andy Samberg and RuPaul t...
Lizzo, Zendaya & Amanda Seyfried Among 2022 Primetime Emmys Winners
Lizzo, Zendaya and Amanda Seyfried were among the winners at the 74th annual Primetime Emmy Awards, held on Monday (Sept. 12) at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls was an upset winner for outstanding competition program. It beat RuPaul’s Drag Race, which won the previous four years, as well as The Amazing Race, The Voice and Top Chef, all of which have also won in the category, and Nailed It!, a four-time nominee in the category. This is Lizzo’s first Emmy. She has won three Grammys and is a likely Grammy nominee this year for her No. 1 smash “About Damn Time.” This marks the first time a first-season show has won in this category since it was introduced in 2003. Zendaya won outstanding lead actress in a drama series for the second time in three yea...
The Off-White™ x Nike Air Force 1 Low “Brooklyn” To Drop Tomorrow Via SNKRS Crap Shoot
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Nike / NIke Virgil Abloh may be gone (Rest In Power, King) but his Off-White™ creations are still a hot commodity out in these streets, and tomorrow (September 13) hypebeasts will be foaming out the mouth when some limited-edition Off-White™ Air Force 1’s drop on the dreaded Nike SNKRS app. HypeBeast is reporting that the bright green colorway to the Off-White™ Air Force 1’s will be releasing on Tuesday (September 13th) via raffle on the Nike SNKRS app as a way to celebrate the late-great Virgil Abloh’s “Figures of Speech” exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum. Related Stories Previously referred to as the “Light Green Spark” colorway, the “Brooklyn” entry in the partnership features a striking all-green look accented by me...
Twitter Gives Jeff Bezos The Bird For Attacking Black Professor
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Michael M. Santiago / Getty A tweet made by Jeff Bezos blasting a Black professor over her comments regarding the death of Queen Elizabeth II has brought him a whirlwind of condemnation from many users on Twitter. Last Thursday (September 8), the death of the British monarch elicited a vast array of reactions online – with some not too broken up over her passing. As initial reports spoke of her grave condition an hour before, Carnegie Mellon University professor Uju Anya expressed her thoughts on Twitter. “I heard the chief monarch of a thieving raping genocidal empire is finally dying,” she wrote. “May her pain be excruciating.” Related Stories The billionaire founder of Amazon wasn’t thrilled with Anya’s comment, quote-tweeting it and saying: “This is s...
PnB Rock Shot Dead While Dining In L.A. Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Gilbert Carrasquillo / Getty Rapper PnB Rock was shot today (Sept. 12) while he was out dining at a Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, he has passed away. According to TMZ, PnB was eating at the Inglewood location of the restaurant with his girlfriend on Monday afternoon. A little before 1:30 pm PT, a gunman came in and shot PnB. Reportedly, the assailant removed jewelry from PnB’s person before fleeing, and didn’t target anyone else in the restaurant. Related Stories Video of PnB as he laid shot on the floor of the restaurant soon started circulating on social media but we will not be sharing that footage. It’s likely his Opps may have moved on PnB after his girlfriend shared footage of where they were eating [Note: Blame the sho...
PnB Rock Reportedly Dead at 30 Years Old
PnB Rock has died at 30 years old. According to reports, the rapper was fatally shot as he and his girlfriend were dining at Roscoe’s House of Chicken ’N Waffles in Inglewood, California. Los Angeles police Captain Kelly Muniz has not yet identified the victim but confirmed that a shooting took place at 1:15 p.m.; the suspect entered the restaurant with a firearm and demanded items from the victim, with sources adding that the rapper was a target for his jewelry. “He shot the victim and ran out the side door to a getaway car and then fled the parking lot,” Muniz said. Rock, whose real name is Rakim Hasheem Allen, was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and started his music career with the 2014 mixtape Real N***a Bangaz, which was written while he was incarcerated. He eventually ...
A 15-Piece Classical Drum & Bass Band Actually Exists—And They’re Making Their Festival Debut
Polyphonic paints drum & bass music a truly unique way—by uniting a 15-piece orchestra. Led by Fiber and The Fiber Pianist, the band aims to reframe the genre’s timeless hits into an awe-inspiring orchestral performance, breaking its boundaries by integrating classical music, jazz, hip-hop and even metal. The project’s lineup includes highly acclaimed musicians, like drummer Koen Herfst (Armin van Buuren), hardstyle vocalist Diandra Faye (Da Tweekaz) and members of the Phion Orchestra, who regularly perform for the King of the Netherlands. Polyphonic’s live debut in July 2021, which was funded by the Dutch Performing Arts Fund, saw them reimagine classics from a number of iconic drum & bass acts, among them Noisia, Chase & Status, High Contrast, Dimension, Netsk...
Police Report 16 Arrests, 1 Death at Burning Man 2022
Despite some crappy things that went down at this year’s Burning Man, police are reporting one of the tamest years in the event’s history in terms of its criminal activity. The Pershing County Sheriff’s Office, which works with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to ensure the safety of Burning Man’s attendees, reported just 16 arrests. That’s down from 58 arrests at last year’s iteration. According to SFGATE, charges included battery of substantial bodily harm, domestic battery, possession of controlled substance, obstructing of a police officer, possession of paraphernalia and sales of controlled substance, among others. Police also reported one death. Judge John Everett Williams, 69, of Huntingdon, Tennessee, died of natural causes on September 2n...
Kanye West Says He’s Done With Corporate America: “Time For Me To Go It Alone”
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Jonathan Leibson / Getty Kanye West wants to cut out the middleman. In a recent interview, Ye says that he’s done with corporate America—well, at least until his contracts with the Gap and adidas are completed. Recently, Ye went on Instagram tirades against adidas, basically complaining about not receiving enough decision-making responsibilities and feeling disrespected despite making the brand millions of dollars. In an interview with Bloomberg, the Chicago multi-hyphenate says he’s done with that game. “It’s time for me to go it alone,” he told the business outlet. “It’s fine. I made the companies money. The companies made me money. We created ideas that will change apparel forever. Like the round jacket, the foam runner, the slides that have changed th...
