Television
‘BET Awards 2020 Needed More Than Ever’: President Scott Mills Reflects on Show’s Lasting Impact & More
BET president Scott Mills wants viewers of this year’s BET Awards to understand one thing up front: don’t call it a virtual awards show. It’s a “complete mischaracterization of what the show is,” says Mills of the BET Awards which, like many other special events, has had to shift gears as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the ceremony will air Sunday evening (June 28) and also make its national broadcast debut on CBS. Noting that other media have tagged the show as virtual, Mills continues, “We actually never have described it as virtual. We said that we’re proceeding with the awards show and not doing it in front of a live audience.” Mills further emphasizes that the show won’t feature artists simply performing from their homes. Instead, performanc...
Jenny Slate Will No Longer Voice “Missy” on Netflix’s ‘Big Mouth’
Source: David Crotty / Getty As the reckoning for businesses across the country continues to happen, some actors in Hollywood are jumping ahead of the curve by playing their part in ensuring that roles and characters based on people of color are actually played by people of color. On Tuesday (Jun 24), voice actress Jenny Slate took to Instagram to announce that she would no longer be the voice of “Missy” the Black character on Netflix’s animated series Big Mouth, before adding that her decision was based on the fact that the role should be voiced by a Black person. “At the start of the show, I reasoned with myself that it was permissible for me to play Missy because her mom is Jewish and White — as am I. But Missy is also Black, and Black characters on an animated show should be played by ...
Kelly Clarkson Crushed a Beautiful Version of This TLC Classic in Her Latest Kellyoke: Watch
In case you forgot, Kelly Clarkson is still slaying it in quarantine. The singer proved that lockdown hasn’t sapped her creative superpowers again on Wednesday when she performed a picture-perfect cover of TLC‘s 1999 hit “Unpretty” on her daytime talk show this week. With her bandmates joining in from ornate digital frames, Clarkson gave the tune a bouncy island vibe. The track about appreciating the beauty that’s inside of you instead of focusing on the external gained a renewed relevance at a time when many of us are realizing that the masks we used to put on every day when we went to work were just that: illusions. Clarkson’s thoughtful, poignant take on the tune brought that message home as she sang it with her face unadorned by makeup or the usual H...
Issa Rae & Bette Midler Team Up For HBO Special ‘Coastal Elites’
Source: HBO / HBO Issa Rae stays getting those checks. On Monday (Jun 22), HBO announced that Issa Rae and Bette Midler will be starring in the new series, Coastal Elites, a series that will explore the deeply divided politics and the universal pursuit of human connection during the pandemic through a series of confessionals. The series, which was produced entirely under quarantine, “tells stories of breaking down and breaking through in the summer of 2020 that are funny, searing, poignant and now,” HBO said in a statement. The series written by Paul Rudnick and directed by Jay Roach will explore the deeply divided politics and the universal pursuit of human connection during the pandemic through a series of confessionals from five characters played by Issa Rae, Bette Midler, Sar...
Issa Rae & Bette Midler Team Up For HBO Special ‘Coastal Elites’
Source: HBO / HBO Issa Rae stays getting those checks. On Monday (Jun 22), HBO announced that Issa Rae and Bette Midler will be starring in the new series, Coastal Elites, a series that will explore the deeply divided politics and the universal pursuit of human connection during the pandemic through a series of confessionals. The series, which was produced entirely under quarantine, “tells stories of breaking down and breaking through in the summer of 2020 that are funny, searing, poignant and now,” HBO said in a statement. The series written by Paul Rudnick and directed by Jay Roach will explore the deeply divided politics and the universal pursuit of human connection during the pandemic through a series of confessionals from five characters played by Issa Rae, Bette Midler, Sar...
Watch This 12-Year-Old Nail Tones And I’s ‘Dance Monkey’ During Her ‘AGT’ Audition
Annie Jones took the stage during Tuesday’s episode (June 23) of America’s Got Talent to audition with Tones and I‘s “Dance Monkey.” After admitting to judge Sofia Vergara that she was “a little” nervous, the 12-year-old singer stunned the audience with her take on her fellow Australian’s smash 2019 hit. “Dance for me, dance for me, dance for me, Oh-oh-oh/ Never seen anybody do the things you do before/ They say move for me, move for me, move for me, yeah-ah-ah/ When you’re done, I’ll make you do it all again/ All again,” the preteen delicately crooned before the beat dropped in and she began swaggering around the stage. By song’s end, the crowd inside Pasadena’s Civic Auditorium was on its feet, with Jones...
Tahiry & Vado Bring “Situationship” To WeTV’s ‘Marriage Bootcamp’
Source: WeTV / Youtube Tahiry and Vado are officially a couple. According to the recent trailer for the upcoming season of WeTV‘s relationship series Marriage Boot Camp hit the internet, the couple and their “situationship” will be making its debut on the popular show’s Hip-Hop edition. As reported by our sister site BOSSIP, while the origin of their intimate relationship is a mystery, in the trailer the pair explain how their friendship turned relationship blossomed, revealing that they basically grew up together in Harlem knowing each other and became good friends over the years. After Tahiry‘s infamous split with former Slaughterhouse member and podcast personality Joe Budden, the two eventually developed a “friends with benefits” style relationship that now has Tahiry asking what’...
‘AGT’ Stars Ndlovu Youth Choir Adapt to COVID-19 by Making New Music
The dusty streets of rural South Africa are a far cry from the bright lights of “America’s Got Talent,” but that’s where the members of the Ndlovu Youth Choir find themselves coping with the coronavirus pandemic. With an electrifying mix of vocals and dance moves, the group made the finals of the U.S. television show last year. Sold-out performances across the U.S. and Europe followed, as well as a recording contract. But COVID-19 halted their international tour and landed them back where they began, Moutse Valley in South Africa’s Limpopo province, one of the country’s poorest regions. “We were supposed to go to Germany for a performance, but it got canceled. We are used to touring the world, doing shows everywhere, and during this corona time it’s been very difficult and frustrating,” sa...
Tim McGraw Shares Touching Performance of ‘Something Like That’ for ‘United We Sing’ Special: Watch
Tim McGraw stripped it down for his performance on Sunday night’s (June 21) United We Sing: A Grammy Salute to the Unsung Heroes. During the two-hour special honoring essential workers, the country superstar delivered a touching acoustic rendition of “Something Like That,” lifted from his Grammy-nominated 1999 album A Place in the Sun. Harry Connick Jr. hosted the special event on CBS, which also featured performances from Jon Batiste, Andra Day, John Fogerty, Jamie Foxx, Herbie Hancock, Cyndi Lauper, Little Big Town, Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Dave Matthews, Trombone Shorty and more. United We Sing supports charities that benefit underserved children, including No Kid Hungry and the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music in New Orleans, as well as the MusiCares COV...
Common, Lena Waithe and More Set For ‘The Chi With Love’ Virtual Benefit Concert
Showtime has set a virtual concert that will feature headliners Lena Waithe and Common — creative collaborators on the network’s Chicago-set series he Chi T— and a focus on the Equal Justice Initiative. On behalf of the drama series, Showtime and parent company ViacomCBS will kick off the fundraising effort with a $500,000 donation. Waithe will appear on the one-hour special while Oscar and Grammy winner Common will perform a set during the concert that will also feature notable Chicago-based artists and The Chi cast members including Jacob Latimore, Twista, Ravyn Lenae, Jamila Woods, BJ The Chicago Kid and MFnMelo. The Chi With Love will stream on the series’ YouTube channel June 21 at 4 p.m. PT (7 p.m. ET), ahead of the season premiere later that night on Showtime at 6 p...
Queen Latifah Wants ‘Gone with the Wind’ to be Gone Forever
While some have criticized HBO Max’s removal of Gone With the Wind from its streaming service — including those who wonder if it hurts the legacy of Hattie McDaniel, the first African American woman to win an Academy Award — Oscar nominee Queen Latifah says good riddance. “Let ‘Gone with the Wind’ be gone with the wind,” said the Emmy, Golden Globe and Grammy winner in an interview last week. Latifah, who portrays McDaniel in Ryan Murphy’s Netflix Hollywood series, says the story behind McDaniel’s Oscar win is not as shiny as the golden trophy. “They didn’t even let her in the theater until right before she got that award. Someone came outside and brought her into the auditorium. She wasn’t even allowed to sit in there. And then she had to read a speech that was written by a stud...
Adele Is Binge-Watching This New British TV Series
Adele has found a new obsession. She’s stanning I May Destroy You. Like the rest of us, the “Hello” singer has been killing time in lockdown by binge-watching TV. With HBO’s new series, she’s discovered a total gem. It’s “the best thing I’ve seen on British TV for yeaaaarssss!!,” the superstar singer enthuses about I May Destroy You. “Go watch it on iplayer right now. It’s wholesome, uncomfortable, hilarious but terribly sad and then awkward…and then it makes you cough a bit for no reason and also makes you go put the kettle on, for no reason.” Directed by and starring Michaela Coel, I May Destroy You spans 12 half-hour episodes. According to its blurb on the IMDB, the series explores the question of sexual consent in contemporary life and how, “in the new landsc...
