NEWS
Grimes, Alanis Morissette to Judge New Avatar Singing Competition Show Alter Ego
There’s a new singing competition show in town, albeit one unlike ever seen before on TV. FOX upcoming series, Alter Ego — a.k.a. “the world’s first avatar singing competition series” — is slated to air this fall, featuring Grimes, Alanis Morissette, will.i.am., Nick Lachey, and Rosci Diaz as its judges. Building off the sight-unseen auditions of The Voice and the completely-anonymous performances of The Masked Singer, Alter Ego will use motion capture technology to transform its participants into their “dream avatars.” “Alter Ego merges talent and technology to revolutionize the singing competition show in only a way Fox can do,” Rob Wade, Fox’s president of alternative entertainment and specials, said in a press release. Advertisement Related Video “We are so excited to bring the f...
Anthony Bourdain’s Widow Denies Giving Permission to Deepfake His Voice in Documentary
Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain premiered in theaters across the country this week, but not without an immense amount of controversy stemming from the use of A.I. to recreate Bourdain’s voice in the film. Now, Bourdain’s ex-wife has confirmed that she did not give filmmaker Morgan Neville permission to deepfake Bourdain’s voice. The drama began when Neville claimed to Variety that he had “checked…with [Bourdain’s] widow and his literary executor, just to make sure” they were OK with the development of the vocal deepfake. Once the article dropped, Ottavia Busia — who was married to the culinary icon from 2007 until their separation in 2016, responded directly to Neville’s claim, writing, “I certainly was NOT the one who said Tony would have been cool with that.” Ottavia’s tweet ca...
Beastie Boys’ Mike D Pays Tribute to “Truly Unique and Ridiculously Talented” Biz Markie
Beastie Boys’ Mike D has shared a lengthy tribute in honor of Biz Markie, a longtime friend and collaborator of the legendary hip-hop group. The “Just a Friend” rapper collaborated with Beastie Boys on numerous occasions throughout the 1990s, including on albums like Check Your Head, Ill Communication, and Hello Nasty, as well as a on a cover of “Benny and the Jets” included on Beastie Boys’ 1999 Sound of Science anthology. “We are so grateful to have had so many unforgettable experiences with the truly unique and ridiculously talented Biz Markie,” said Mike D in a statement posted to Beastie Boys’ social media channels. “We will miss his presence deeply in so many ways.” Advertisement Related Video “In the ’90s, Biz would often show up at our G Son studio in Atwater, CA,” Mike D recounted...
Fyre Festival Bankruptcy Case Leaves Attendees With Just 4% of What They’re Owed
Fyre Festival attendees have been dealt a definitive blow to their prospects of recovering a material portion of their promised settlement. In May a class action settlement ruling by the US bankruptcy court of New York was approved, effectively paving the way for the plaintiffs—consisting of 277 attendees—to receive up to $7,220 per person for a total settlement of over $2 million. However, that initial figure has changed drastically due to the fact that the Bankruptcy Trustee, Gregory Messer, was able to recover only $1.4 million in assets from the failed festival company. To make matters worse, $1.1 million of that sum went back towards paying court and legal fees, leaving just $300,000 to service the festival’s creditors, which includes ticket-holders. Messer’s jo...
Usher Launches Las Vegas Residency: ‘I Don’t Want to Close the Curtain’
From there, Usher rolled out hit after hit as well as other fan faves curated from a Grammy Award-winning career that began in 1994. The energetic journey down memory lane kicked off with “Caught Up,” followed by “Love in This Club” and “Party” (the Chris Brown song featuring Usher and Gucci Mane). It was a nonstop audience sing-along as Usher and his crew of dancers triggered a slew of oh-wow moments from there, including “Lovers and Friends” and “There Goes My Baby.” During a segment devoted to his Atlanta roots, Usher donned skates along with his dancers and turned the massive Colosseum stage into a giant roller rink as he performed “Don’t Waste My Time” (featuring Ella Mai). Then in a nod to Magic City, Atlanta’s famous strip club, pole dancers showcased their flexibility amid a shower...
Camila Cabello Shows Off Bare Stomach While Sharing Inspiring Message About Body Positivity
“I wasn’t tucking it in, because I was running and existing like a normal person that doesn’t tuck it in all the time,” she continues with sass. “And I was like, ‘Damn.’ But then I reminded myself being at war with your body is so last season.” Cabello goes on to say she’s “grateful” for having a body that “lets me do what I need to do. We are real women with curves and cellulite and stretch marks and fat. And we got to own that, baby.” The singer concludes the post — captioned “I luv my body” — by belting a line from Aretha Franklin‘s “Something He Can Feel” while running her hand across her tummy. This isn’t the first time the “Señorita” singer has shut down body shamers. In 2019, ...
Willow Shaves Her Head During Rock Reboot of ‘Whip My Hair’: Watch
“When I made ‘Whip My Hair,’ I didn’t really know it was an important thing because I was just expressing my joy. I was just expressing myself,” Willow said during the concert special. “Young Willow was just so fearless.” She continued: “The core of ‘Whip My Hair’ is the core idea of all of my music. The genre just changes. But I’m saying the same thing every single time. For so many years, I just kind of spiraled and didn’t understand that and wanted to push myself away from that without having that understanding: I’m pushing away the very thing that is who I am.” “I want to be promoting positivity,” added Willow. “I want to be promoting expression. I feel like ‘Whip My Hair’ ...
Britney Spears Calls Out Her Dad, Sister and Critics of Her Living Room Dance Videos
She said, “I’d much rather share videos YES from my living room instead of onstage in Vegas where some people were so far gone they couldn’t even shake my hand and I ended up getting a contact high from weed all the time … which I didn’t mind but it would have been nice to be able to go to the mother f—ing spa !!!!” “And no I’m not gonna put on heavy makeup and try try try on stage again and not be able to do the real deal with remixes of my songs for years and begging to put my new music in my show for MY fans … so I quit !!!!” Spears continued, adding a sharp note about her sister, Jamie Lynn Spears: “I don’t like that my sister showed up at an awards show and performed MY SONGS to remixes !!!!!” “M...
Mike D of Beastie Boys Remembers Biz Markie: ‘He Could Not Be Stopped’
Following Biz Markie’s death on Friday evening, numerous tributes honoring the rapper’s legacy flooded social media. On Saturday, Mike D of the Beastie Boys remembered the trio’s longtime friend in a tribute posted on the group’s social media platforms. “We are so grateful to have had so many unforgettable experiences with the truly unique and ridiculously talented Biz Markie. We will miss his presence deeply in so many ways. In the ’90s, Biz would often show up at our G Son studio in Atwater [Village], CA. Naturally every visit would start with a trip to the candy store — which in this case was actually a liquor store across the street. Regardless, he would always return happy with a brown paper bag full of treats. Once he had his sugar fix, he would typically grab a mic and sing whatever...
New Mask Mandate Could Severely Impact Los Angeles Nightlife
A surging new wave of COVID-19 infections has led LA County officials to announce the reinstatement of their mask mandate policy. Effective 11:59PM, July 17th, the regulation requires everyone to once again wear a mask while indoors regardless of their vaccination status. The circumstances could prove damaging to a nightlife industry that has borne substantial economic hardship over the last year. Many of the city’s clubs and venues, such as the historic Troubador, were at risk of permanent closure following the onset of COVID-19. Fox 11 Los Angeles reports business owners expressed frustration over the potential of losing business to establishments in surrounding counties where no such mandate is currently in effect. However, that might soon change after Long Beach County subse...
UK Parliamentary Probe Results In Calls for “Complete Reset” of the Streaming Industry
A Parliamentary probe into the current market dynamics of music streaming has yielded a bold call for a “complete reset” of the market by British MP’s. The topic of fair pay for artists has been a contentious one throughout the rise of the streaming era, but the results of this particular inquiry—published by Parliament’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) wing—have led to a rare inflection point where new protectionist regulations might be on the horizon. The subject of this inquiry considered the economic relationship between artists and their record labels, and unsurprisingly, the results showed that labels are reaping a disproportionate amount of the financial benefits. “While streaming has brought significant profits to the recorded music indu...
You Can Win a Lifetime Spot on deadmau5’s Guest List in New Video Game Contest
deadmau5 and Lights are teaming up with the video game Core for a contest featuring a number of wild prizes. The creative session is in honor of the artists’ latest collaboration “When The Summer Dies.” For those unfamiliar with Core, it’s far from your traditional video game. It’s actually not even a game half of the time, but rather a platform that lets you create your own games and visual art, and share them with the world. Creators will have a chance to have their work featured in the upcoming music video for the new song. Players are tasked with creating worlds that fit four specific themes: War-Torn, Cyberpunk/SciFi, Abandoned Stages, and Dystopian. Core‘s developers shared a video on their YouTube channel explaining the details of the in...
