Entertainment News
Andra Day Refuses to Be Silenced in First Trailer for The United States vs. Billie Holiday: Watch
Andra Day in The United States vs. Billie Holiday trailer Billie Holiday’s fame in the ’30s and ’40s threatened the very fabric of racist white America. But it was her popular recording of “Strange Fruit”, a song protesting the lynching of Black people, that officially made Holiday an enemy of the country. In an effort to discredit and silence her, the Federal Department of Narcotics targeted Holiday relentlessly, knowing she’d had a history of drug abuse. That’s the haunting premise of The United States vs. Billie Holiday, a new Hulu biopic from director Lee Daniels (Precious) written by Pulitzer Prize winner Suzan-Lori Parks. The legendary jazz singer is played by real-life Grammy nominee Andra Day, who embodies Holiday’s brazen outspokenness and magnetism in equal measure, as seen in to...
Bassist Marko Hietala Quits Nightwish, Condemns Music Industry on the Way Out
Former Nightwish bassist Marko Hietala, second from right, courtesy of Nuclear Blast Longtime Nightwish bassist Marko Hietala has quit the symphonic metal band after joining the Finnish group in 2001. Hietala issued a highly personal statement regarding his departure, condemning the music industry in the process. Among his grievances, Hietala cited “streaming company big guns demanding 9-to-5 work from artists of inspiration while unfairly sharing the profits.” Nightwish have long been a leading artist in the world of symphonic metal, and their 2004 opus, Once, remains one of Nuclear Blast Records’ most successful releases after topping the charts in multiple countries. The bassist didn’t expressly call out his record label, specific promoters, or any of his bandmates, but said that a pers...
Toledo Share New Song “Dog Has Its Day”: Stream
Although they share a name with the Ohio city, Toledo are a band from Brooklyn. The duo of Daniel Alvarez and Jordan Dunn-Pilz are in the midst of rolling out an EP called Jockeys of Love, and today they’re giving fans a preview with a song called “Dog Has Its Day”. The track follows October’s “Challenger” and December’s “It’s Alive!”, which serve as a solid representation of the sounds that Toledo’s music straddles: brisk, slightly surfy dream-pop and crisp, tranquil indie-folk. “Dog Has Its Day” retains the prettiness of the former, but musically it leans closer to the latter sensibility. Over a mellow yet steady groove, Alvarez and Dunn-Pilz stack a whispery falsetto over a mesmerizing acoustic guitar lick and let that ride for a while. Eventually, some beautifully congealed harmonies e...
IAN SWEET Announces New Album Show Me How You Disappear, Shares “Drink the Lake”: Stream
IAN SWEET, the CoSigned indie project headed up by Jilian Medford, has announced a new album. Show Me How You Disappear arrives in March and is being teased today with a single called “Drink the Lake”. The upcoming effort is IAN SWEET’s third overall and follow-up to 2018’s Crush Crusher, which Medford broke down for us track by track. According to a statement, a bulk of the songs on Show Me How came to fruition after Medford completed a two-month intensive outpatient program in early 2020. The rigorous treatment involved six-hour days of therapy and saw Medford looking inward more than ever before — so much so that she even took a break from music in order to focus on her self-care. Show Me How is a direct result of those reflections and the emotional catharsis that came with them. “...
Hardcore Act Thirdface Announce Debut Album, Unleash Single “Villains!”: Stream
Nashville hardcore group Thirdface have announced their debut full-length, Do It With a Smile, which will arrive on March 5th via Exploding in Sound Records. In advance of the LP, they’ve unleashed the song ‘Villains!” as the first single. For many, this ripping track will their introduction to Thirdface, and a fine introduction it is. As the song title implies, “Villains!” is loud and grinding, anchored by swirling bass work and bold declarations against the oppressive forces of society. “When writing ‘Villains!’ I was watching a lot of [the anime series] Fist of the North Star, which gives the song its title,” vocalist Kathryn Edwards told BrooklynVegan. “I wanted to write a song about tearing some evil down from its pedestal like Ken from FOTNS would do. But decided to speak on reality ...
Chadwick Boseman’s Wife Simone Gives Tearful Tribute at Gotham Awards: “Keep Shining Your Light On Us”
At Monday’s Gotham Awards, Simone Ledwick Boseman accepted an award on behalf of her late husband Chadwick Boseman. Via EW, she offered a tearful tribute honoring “the most honest person I’ve ever met.” Boseman had been nominated for Best Actor for his performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and while Riz Ahmed eventually won for Sound of Metal, Boseman received a posthumous Actor Tribute. His widow made a virtual appearance, offering one of the most emotionally raw speeches of this or any other award ceremony. “He was the most honest person I’ve ever met,” she said, “because he didn’t just stop at speaking the truth, he actively searched for it: In himself, in those around him and in the moment, The truth can be a very easy thing for the self to avoid, but if one does...
NOFX announce new album, unveil single “Linewleum” featuring Avenged Sevenfold: Stream
Los Angeles punk veterans NOFX have announced their 14th full-length LP, titled Single Album. In advance of its February 26th release, frontman Fat Mike and co. have unveiled the single “Linewleum” featuring contributions from members of Avenged Sevenfold. Single Album marks NOFX’s first LP since 2016’s First Ditch Effort. It is also the band’s first album since members of NOFX made highly insensitive onstage comments about the country music fans who died in the horrific Route 91 Harvest music festival massacre in Las Vegas in 2017. While the band apologized profusely, they were dropped from their own Punk in Drublic festival’s lineup and had a series of tour dates canceled. The new single, “Linewleum”, is actually an update of NOFX’s song “Linoleum”, which was the lead track on their 1994...
YFN Lucci Wanted for Felony Murder in Atlanta
Rayshawn Bennett, the 29-year-old rapper who goes by YFN Lucci, is wanted on a federal murder charge following a shootout in Atlanta on December 10th. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the shooting resulted in the death of a 28-year-old man named James Adams and left another man severely injured. Two suspects, Ra’von Boyd and Leroy Pitts, have already been arrested on similar charges in Miami, Florida for their alleged roles in the shootout. In addition to murder, Bennett is wanted on aggravated assault, participating in criminal street gang activity, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The Atlanta police department is offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who provides information leading to the rapper’s arrest. Anonymous tips can be made by contac...
Chuck Norris’ Rep Says He Wasn’t at the MAGA Capitol Riot
Chuck Norris wasn’t at the MAGA capitol riot, but his doppelganger sure was. After a photo began circulating on social media that appeared to show the 80-year-old actor posing at last week’s insurrection, his representative Eric Kritzer has confirmed that it isn’t Norris in the photo, but a fraudulent imposter. “This is not Chuck Norris and is a wannabe look-alike although Chuck is much more handsome,” Kritzer said in a statement delivered to PEOPLE (via EW ). “Chuck remains on his range in Texas where he has been with his family.” Although it wouldn’t be surprising to learn that the long-time Republican and ex-TV cop who’s regarded as a symbol of American masculinity was present in a mob of people who live and breathe that shit, the guy standing next to that grimacing imbec...
Bruce Willis Booted from LA Pharmacy for Refusing to Wear Mask
Live free… or die hard in the ICU: Bruce Willis, he of the Die Hard franchise, was asked to leave a Los Angeles pharmacy after refusing to abide by the city’s strict mask guidelines. Page Six reports Willis was shopping at a Rite Aid in LA, the current epicenter of the pandemic in the US, when some of his fellow patrons became upset that he wasn’t wearing a mask. They complained to the store’s workers, who asked Willis to follow guidelines and cover his face. Despite having a bandana around his neck that he easily could have just pulled up, the actor refused, and was asked to leave. Apparently, Willis left without much of a disagreement, but also without making his purchase. Editors’ Picks Willis had spent the early part of the pandemic quarantined in Idaho with his ex-wife, Demi Moo...
Paul McCartney’s Daughter Mary McCartney to Direct Abbey Road Documentary
In 1931, the Gramophone Company opened a studio in a Georgian townhouse on London’s Abbey Road. Nine decades later and Abbey Road Studios has become perhaps the most famous recording studio. Now, Mary McCartney, daughter of Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney, is planning to tell the studio’s story with a new documentary titled, If These Walls Could Sing. For many people, the significance of Abbey Road has everything to do with Abbey Road, the 11th studio album by The Beatles. But the former EMI Recording Studios has a rich place in much more of Britain’s musical history, from 1930s sessions with the London Symphony Orchestra through the first digital recording ever made in the UK to its place today as a historical landmark. If These Walls Could Sing will be the first time a documentar...
Disneyland Is Now a COVID-19 Vaccination Site
The House of Mouse is now the Pad of Jabs. According to a new statement from Orange County, CA, Disneyland will become the region’s first large Point-of-Dispensing (POD) site for the COVID-19 vaccine. Unlike its partner park in Florida, which reopened in July, Disneyland has been closed to guests since March. But later this week, the enchanted gates will open once more to inoculate Phase 1a citizens of Orange County. These include everyone 65 and older, as well as “law enforcement first responders in high-risk communities.” As a so-called “Super POD,” Disneyland should have the capacity to vaccinate thousands of people a day. Dr. Pamela Hymel, the Chief Medical Officer for Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, told ABC7 that, “Disneyland Resort is proud to help support Orange C...
