Quoteworthy
The Rolling Stones on Loss of Charlie Watts: “He Held the Band Together for So Long”
One month after the death of longtime drummer Charlie Watts, the remaining members of The Rolling Stones have opened up about their tremendous loss. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ronnie Wood shared their memories of Watts and described his impact on the band. “He held the band together for so long, musically, because he was the rock the rest of it was built around,” Jagger explained. “The thing he brought was this beautiful sense of swing and swerve that most bands wish they could have. We had some really nice conversations in the last couple of years about how all this happened with the band. It’s a huge loss to us all. It’s very, very hard.” The lead singer also broke down how Watts brought his eclectic musical background to the Stones. “He wasn’...
Michael Stipe Says R.E.M. “Will Never Reunite”
In the decade since R.E.M.’s split in 2011, the alternative rockers have shown no intention of ever getting back together. Exactly 10 years to the day of their break-up, lead singer Michael Stipe dispelled any notions of a reunion during an appearance on WNYC’s All Of It. “That’s wishful thinking. We will never reunite,” Stipe plainly told host Alison Stewart after she brought up a Rolling Stone article that gave 30% odds to a R.E.M. reunion. “We decided when we split up that that would just be really tacky and probably money-grabbing, which might be the impetus for a lot of bands to get back together.” Hear Stipe’s full quote below at the 24:25 mark. Back in 2014, Stipe expressed a similar sentiment during an interview with CBS This Morning. “I love those guys very much and I respect...
Dune Director Denis Villeneuve Claims Marvel Movies “Have Turned Us into Zombies”
Denis Villeneuve has started promoting his new film Dune, and he has thoughts on the impact the Marvel Cinematic Universe has had on audiences over the last 13 years. Speaking with the Spanish-language outlet El Mundo, Villeneuve noted that big budget blockbuster filmmaking can retain artistic merit, citing filmmakers like Christopher Nolan and Alfonso Curaon. “Perhaps the problem is that we are in front of too many Marvel movies that are nothing more than a ‘cut and paste’ of others,” the director said. “Perhaps these types of movies have turned us into zombies a bit… But big and expensive movies of great value there are many today. I don’t feel capable of being pessimistic at all.” (English translation courtesy of Indiewire.) Villeneuve continued, “Just think of the golden age of Hollywo...
John Lydon: “I’m Seriously in a State of Financial Ruin”
John “Johnny Rotten” Lydon is never so eloquent as when throwing himself a pity party. Now that his legally tenuous efforts to wring more money out of Danny Boyle’s Sex Pistols miniseries has failed, the onetime frontman is, “scuppered,” “brassic,” plain old “fucked,” and “seriously in a state of financial ruin,” according to his new interview with The Telegraph (via Louder). The limited series is called Pistol, and is based on the book Lonely Boy: Tales From a Sex Pistol by the band’s former guitarist Steve Jones. Lydon’s been making a stink about it since at least April, when he threatened to sue because of the “disrespectful” decision not to hire him as a consultant. When that didn’t work, he attempted to block Sex Pistols’ music from appearing in...
Travis Barker Says He “Never Even Considered Flying Again” Until Dating Kourtney Kardashian
In August, Travis Barker took a brave step by boarding his first flight since the deadly 2008 plane crash that left him severely burned. In a new interview with Nylon, the Blink-182 drummer opened up about the experience and credited his relationship with Kourtney Kardashian for giving him the courage to fly again. “It’s still something very new to me, but having something that gives me the strength and hope to be able to overcome things that were so traumatic in my life, it just says a ton,” Barker said. “She’s definitely that for me. I’m invincible when I’m with her. It’s like I never dreamed, I never even considered flying again.” Barker explained that his recent trip to Cabo with Kardashian was part of a pact he made with her. “I made a deal with her that she had just said to me, ...
Disney “Doesn’t Want” Frank Oz to Do The Muppets Anymore
It’s hard to imagine someone not falling in love with — or at least being charmed by — The Muppets in all of their tender, felted magic. But apparently, loving the puppet doesn’t always equate to loving the puppeteer. According to Frank Oz — the beloved puppeteer originally behind Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, and Animal, and iconic Sesame Street characters like Cookie Monster and Bert — Disney “doesn’t want” to work with him anymore. Oz hasn’t been involved with The Muppets or The Jim Henson Company since 2007. Fans long assumed that he retired in favor of more acting roles in films like Knives Out, but in a new interview with The Guardian, the actor revealed that he didn’t put the job on hold by choice. “I’d love to do The Muppets again, but Disney doesn’t want me, and Sesame Street...
DaBaby “Apologized” to GLAAD For Homophobic Remarks: Report
Noted homophobe DaBaby has reportedly issued his fourth — fifth? — apology for anti-gay and sexist remarks he made during his Rolling Loud Miami set last month. According to a press release issued by GLAAD Tuesday, the rapper attended a virtual meeting with leaders from several H.I.V. organizations last week, during which he apologized for his atrocious comments. “Our goal was to ‘call [DaBaby] in instead of calling him out,’” the statement reads. “We believed that if he connected with Black leaders living with HIV that a space for community building and healing could be created. We are encouraged he swiftly answered our call and joined us in a meaningful dialogue and a thoughtful, educational meeting.” Furthermore, the statement describes DaBaby as having been “genuinely engaged” in...
John Lydon Says Court Decision on Danny Boyle’s TV Series Will “Water Down” Sex Pistols’ Legacy
Last week, John Lydon officially lost a court case over the use of the Sex Pistols’ music in Pistol, an upcoming TV series about the group that’s directed by Danny Boyle. Now, the infamous musician has shared a written statement in which he claims the “majority rules” technicality that lost him the case will also “water down” Sex Pistols’ legacy in the years to come. As The Guardian notes, a press statement was published today on Lydon’s website suggesting Lydon was only made aware of Pistol hours before it was announced. It also claimed he still has not been told how the band will be portrayed in the series, adding that he feels there’s a good chance all of this will “distort the true history” of Sex Pistols. “For more than 23 years the Sex Pistols have operated on the basis of unanimous ...
Noel Gallagher’s Son Taught Him How to Play AC/DC’s “Back in Black”
For the Gallaghers, musical proficiency is a family affair. Liam and Noel rose to superstardom as the core members of Oasis, and their kids are apparently following in their footsteps: During a recent episode of his residency on British rock station Radio X (via NME), Noel revealed that his 10-year-old son, Sonny, taught him how to play the AC/DC classic “Back in Black.” The High Flying Birds singer said that ever since Sonny picked up the guitar not too long ago, he “rattles around on it every night.” But rather than gravitating towards the Britpop of Oasis, Noel’s “little protégé” is evidently big on classic rock bands like AC/DC and Queen. I genuinely did not know how to play this riff, ‘Back In Black’, which is a famous riff,” Noel said. Noel went on to describe how he’s been thoughtfu...
“Never Call Me Your Drummer Again!” The Time Charlie Watts Punched Mick Jagger
Charlie Watts, the legendary drummer whose jazz-inflected grooves kept The Rolling Stones, rolling along, has died at the age of 80. The tributes have been pouring in, and amidst all of the fond remembrances, one memory sticks out as being more fond than most: the time Watts punched Mick Jagger. The anecdote comes from Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards’ 2010 autobiography Life. During a period when Jagger was one of the most famous people in the entire world — and, as Richards tells it, among the most irritating — Watts was one of the few people willing to put him in his place. “There was a rare moment, in late 1984, of Charlie throwing his drummer’s punch — a punch I’ve seen a couple of times and it’s lethal; it carries a lot of balance and timing,” Richards wrote. “He has t...
The Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger, Keith Richards Pay Tribute to Charlie Watts
The music world was shaken today when we learned of the death of Charlie Watts, the longtime drummer for The Rolling Stones. There has been an outpouring of reactions to the passing, with celebrities and peers from Paul McCartney to Questlove sharing messages. Now, two of his surviving bandmates have also paid tribute to Watts. In separate Instagram posts, both Mick Jagger and Keith Richards shared images in memory of their longtime bandmate. The former posted an image of a smiling Watts in action, a fitting way to remember the steady stickman known for his constant beaming behind his kit. It’s also nice to know this is how Jagger choose to remember him, rather than the time Watts punched Jagger for calling him “my drummer.” Richards, meanwhile, posted an image of Watts’ drum set with a “C...
Britney Spears Feels Liberated in Topless Instagram Photo Shoot: “My Purest Form !!”
Britney Spears is now one step closer to freedom, and she’s celebrating by shedding her clothes — literally. In one of her first public statements since her father announced he’d be stepping down as her conservator, Spears posted a series of topless photos to her Instagram page. In the accompanying caption, the singer acknowledged that she has long struggled with body image issues, but now finds it therapeutic to take photos of herself in “my purest form.” “I wanted to see myself in a lighter way … naked … like the way I was born,” Spears explained, “and to me looking back at my pictures when I shoot it’s insane the psychology in seeing myself in my purest form gives evidence that pain … hurt … tears … and heavy burdens aren’t who I am. I am a woman …. a beautiful … sensitive woman who nee...
