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15 Nov 2024

Taylor Swift Reacts to ‘Truly Emotional’ Grammy Nominations for ‘Tortured Poets’ at Eras Tour

When the Eras Tour first started nearly two years ago, Taylor Swift‘s The Tortured Poets Department didn’t even exist. Now, the trek has just a handful of shows left, and the bestselling album is up for multiple Grammys.

At her Canada-leg kickoff concert in Toronto Thursday (Nov. 14) — the singer’s first performance since Grammy nods were announced the week prior — Swift took a moment during the night’s surprise song section to reflect on her 11th studio album’s success. “You guys did something over the course of the last few months,” she began, moments before diving into an acoustic-guitar mashup of “My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys” and Reputation‘s “This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things.”

“What you did with embracing Tortured Poets Department the album, it’s truly blown my mind,” she continued, as captured in fan videos. “Because it’s truly emotional to me. This album — I wrote it during the Eras Tour. I wrote that album, made that album, all trying to keep it a secret from you guys, and then announced the album. And we basically were working really hard to secretly put together a new chapter of the Eras Tour of The Tortured Poets Department, and we wanted to surprise you guys with it.”

Trending on Billboard

Swift then thanked her fans for being “so wonderful about digging into this album and understanding where I was coming from with it.” “Everything that happens is a direct reflection of the passion you show, and you guys got this album nominated for six Grammys,” she added. “So thank you.”

The “Anti-Hero” singer’s first of six shows in Toronto came six days after the Recording Academy unveiled its 2025 honorees, revealing that The Tortured Poets Department — which spent 15 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 — is in the running for album of the year. It makes Swift the woman with the most AOTY nominations ever, and follows her record-breaking fourth win in the category last year with Midnights, which made her the artist with the most AOTY wins in Grammy history.

This year, Swift is also up for record and song of the year for “Fortnight,” her Billboard Hot 100-topping duet with Post Malone, which also snagged her a Grammy nod for best music video. Plus, Tortured Poets is being considered for best pop vocal album, while the superstar’s Gracie Abrams collaboration, “Us,” is recognized in the best pop duo/group performance category.

Swift now has just a total of eight Eras Tour shows left before the culture-shifting trek concludes Dec. 8 in Vancouver, B.C. When it first started in March 2023, the three-hour-plus program was a very different show. Instead of the now-nightly Tortured Poets section that’s been in play since the album dropped in April, the performer used to sing extended selections from her first 10 albums. To make room for new tracks such as “Fortnight,” “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart” and “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?,” Swift cut several of her older songs and combined her Folklore and Evermore sections into one.

15 Nov 2024

Darren Criss and Helen J. Shen Talk Finding Their ‘Maybe Happy Ending’ on Broadway: ‘It’s a Really Charming, Kind Little World’

It’s best to let Darren Criss describe the simply complex story of Maybe Happy Ending, the new musical he co-stars in with Broadway newcomer Helen J. Shen. “There’s what the story is and then there’s what the show is about,” the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning singer/actor/songwriter tells Billboard in an interview you can watch above.

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“Those aren’t necessarily the same things,” he notes about the musical love story from Will Aronson and Hue Park, in which the former Glee star and Shen appear as obsolete Helperbot robots who meet cute and fall in love. “Thematically, it’s about two elderly people in hospice who decide to break out of the situation to go connect with their family,” says Criss about what sounds like a potentially dark theme.

And while that “grim, depressing construct for a show” doesn’t sound like the stuff of uplifting Broadway magic, Criss promises that the musical’s creators have somehow morphed that idea about the chilly march of time and hard lessons about love and life into a “really charming, kind little world” filled with Helper robots who are living embodiments of our iPhones and other digital assistants.

Because many of us imbue our inanimate digital devices with human-like qualities, sometimes holding on to them well past their best-by use date, Criss says the musical asks what happens when those objects become more like us?

Shen makes her Broadway debut in the play alongside theater/TV/movie veteran Criss, 37, after turning heads last year in the ensemble of the Off Broadway musical Teeth. She says one of the most exciting parts of performing in the show is the chance to take the lead in a completely new piece of theater not based on any existing intellectual property or a reboot/revival, but something that theatergoers have never seen before.

“It’s super overwhelming. The idea of it has been something that I’ve dreamed about my whole life,” says Shen, 24 of originating a character on Broadway. “And to have it come to fruition with this particular story, with this particular group of people I just feel… abundance. I feel so lucky and grateful.”

Both say they feel really blessed to be part of the show, with Criss noting that he has typically starred in “iconic” roles in his previous Broadway runs, including as Harry Potter in A Very Potter Musical, J. Pierrpont Finch in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors and Hedwig in Hedwig and the Angry Inch, among others. “These are things people know and love,” he says of those classics.

“[Which] were great, with or without me. I now go in there trying to do my own thing and make it my own and there’s the excitement of the challenge, but also the pressure of living up to a certain thing and wanting to do your own thing,” he adds about trying to find something of yourself in a well-known role people may have seen many other times with other performers. “Whereas this, it’s an open canvas, not only for us, but for the audience. They don’t have any preconceived notions. That’s the best thing about this.”

Because it is a new experience, audiences don’t know what to expect, which both actors say makes attendees really listen and sit up in their seats to take in all the nuance of the show that also heralds the Broadway debuts for creators Aronson and Park; it began its life on stage in Seoul, South Korea in 2016 and was later produced in Japan and China as well.

Maybe Happy Ending, directed by Michael Arden (Parade), is open now at the Belasco Theatre on Broadway.

15 Nov 2024

Theater Stars Michael Ball & Alfie Ball Secure Fourth U.K. No.1 Album As a Duo

Musical theater stars Michael Ball and Alfie Boe have landed their fourth No.1 album as a duo on the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart. 

The British pair – who have both performed extensively in West End show Les Misérables among others over the years – released their fourth studio album Together At Home via Tag8 Music. It follows their previous releases Together (2016), Together Again (2017) and festive collection Together at Christmas (2020), all of which landed at the summit of the chart. Ball also has two No. 1 records to his name as a soloist.

Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet finishes at No. 2 following the news that the LP was nominated in three categories at the 2025 Grammys: album of the year, best pop vocal album and best engineered album (non-classical). Carpenter nabbed seven nods in total, including best new artist.   

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The Cure’s Songs of a Lost World holds steady at No. 3, having previously been at the top spot last week, which gave them their first chart-topping album in 32 years. The band also saw success on multiple Billboard charts over the last week, including topping the Total Album Sales chart and landing at No. 4 on the Billboard 200.

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There’s also an entry in the top 10 for Lancaster rockers Massive Wagons, as their seventh studio LP, Earth to Grace, finishes at No. 4. It’s their first to land in the top five and their third to place inside the top 10. 

As new documentary film Elton John: Never Too Late lands on Disney+, the Rocket Man’s enduring Diamonds greatest hits collection returns to the top 10 this week, rising four spots to No. 8. 

Elsewhere, rising U.K. rappers Fimiguerrero, Len and Lancey Foux score their first collaborative top 40 album with Conglomerate at No. 23.

Scottish icons Primal Scream, led by vocalist Bobby Gillespie, return to the top 40 with their 12th studio album, Come Ahead. It’s their first new material in eight years, and their 13th top 40 record across a 37 year career. 

15 Nov 2024

Gracie Abrams Rules at No. 1 for Second Week on U.K. Singles Chart

Gracie Abrams has landed a second week at No. 1 on the U.K. Singles Chart with “That’s So True,” the breakout song from the deluxe edition of her sophomore album, The Secret of Us.

Last week “That’s So True” gave Abrams her maiden chart-topper in the U.K., and follows The Secret of Us debuting at No.1 on the Official Albums Chart back in June. Her second album comes after a starring role as an opener on Taylor Swift‘s mammoth Eras Tour over the past year, which concludes in Canada over the coming weekends.

“That’s So True” is also shaping up to be a rival to end Shaboozey’s record-breaking reign with “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” on the Billboard Hot 100. As reported in the The Contenders column, Abrams’ song is performing well on streaming and on social platforms such as TikTok, and currently sits at No. 13 on the Hot 100.

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Gigi Perez’s “Sailor Song” remains steady at No. 2, while ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” is also non-mover at No. 3. Elsewhere, Chappell Roan’s “Hot to Go!” finds a new peak at No. 4, as Teddy Swims’ “The Door” enters the top five for the first time, completing the week at No. 5.

“Wildflower,” from Billie Eilish’s third album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, continues to rise and hits No. 7, giving the singer-songwriter her third top 10 single from the album. British breakout artist Myles Smith takes the week’s highest new entry, with his new single “Nice to Meet You” landing at No. 12, and follows the Luton singer-songwriter’s hit song “Stargazing,” which peaked at No. 4 in the U.K. and at No. 24 on the Hot 100.

The holiday season is fast approaching, as Mariah Carey makes her first entry in the top 40 this year with her Yuletide classic “All I Want for Christmas Is You” landing at No. 38, with Wham!’s “Last Christmas” trailing at No. 43.

15 Nov 2024

Brooks & Dunn Joins Jelly Roll, Morgan Wallen on New ‘Reboot II’ Album: Listen to the Collabs

Country Music Hall of Famers Brooks & Dunn just released their new collaborative Reboot II album (which follows their 2019 Reboot album), again teaming with many of today’s chart-toppers to record new versions of the duo’s enduring classic ’90s country hits.

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In particular, Reboot II finds Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn teaming with Jelly Roll in a stirring version of B&D’s hit “Believe,” while they collaborate with Morgan Wallen on a new rendition of “Neon Moon.”

“What was even more impressive was to sit down with this bunch and turn them loose to do the songs in whatever way fit their artistic vision,” Dunn previously told Billboard when the new album was first announced. “The fun part was we weren’t chasing the original recordings or arrangements or our versions. We turned them loose to do whatever they wanted to do and, I’m biased, but it was really refreshing.”

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While Wallen largely hewed closely to B&D’s original recording on “Neon Moon,” Jelly Roll’s version of “Believe” further ups the ante on the song’s gospel tones, with Jelly heightening Dunn’s vocal on the chorus with some ad-libbed call-and-response singing, all backed by a powerful choir.

On the duo’s original 2019 Reboot project, Kane Brown joined Brooks & Dunn on “Believe,” while Kacey Musgraves had joined the duo on “Neon Moon.”

Brooks & Dunn’s Reboot II also features collaborations with Lainey Wilson, Riley Green, Jake Worthington, Megan Moroney and Ernest.

Listen to B&D’s collaboration with Morgan Wallen on “Neon Moon” and collaboration with Jelly Roll on “Believe” below:

15 Nov 2024

Mike Tyson Gives Jake Paul A Little Love Tap Before Big Fight

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Paul vs Tyson Weigh-Ins - Premiere Boxing Championship

Mike Tyson and Jake Paul will be locking horns in the squared circle Friday night (November 15) in a bout that will draw plenty of views as the former heavyweight champion takes on a much younger fighter. During the mandatory faceoff for photo opportunities, Mike Tyson gave Jake Paul a little smack on the cheek to let him know what will be in store for tonight.

Mike Tyson and Jake Paul were in Texas at the weigh-in ahead of their super fight bout that will be held at the AT&T Stadium, which will air live on Netflix. As custom for most combat sporting events, Tyson and Paul greeted each other in the stare-down segment after the weigh-in with all the theatrics fighters used to intimidate or size up their opponents.

In a video clip that has since gone viral, Paul rushed Tyson and crowded his space, prompting Iron Mike to unleash five fingers to the face in yet another slap heard around the world. The pair were quickly separated with a smiling Paul mocking Tyson at the moment.

According to a report from ESPN, a Tyson insider claims that Paul stepped on Tyson’s foot during the faceoff and had enough of the trash talk with the footstepping being a final straw.

For what it’s worth, Tyson, 58, weighed in at a fit 233 pounds with Paul, 27, weighing in at 220. To date, this is the largest gap in age between two fighters in professional boxing history.

Tyson, who boasts a record of 50-6 with 44 knockouts, has not fought professionally in 19 years. Tyson has participated in a pair of exhibition fights, including clashing with Roy Jones Jr. Paul’s last fight came last July with a sixth-round stoppage of Mike Perry by TKO.

The Friday night bout between “Iron” Mike Tyson and Jake Paul kicks off on Netflix at 8 PM EST. Learn more here.

Hop to the 1:03-minute mark to see the moment in question.

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Photo: Getty

15 Nov 2024

In Canada: Toronto Goes All Out for Taylor, Plus Quebec Targets Touts

Taylor Swift began her two-week Eras Tour run in Toronto Thursday night (Nov. 14), and the city is going all out. 

Before she hit the stage, footage circulated of her arriving with a whole police cavalcade on the Gardiner Expressway – which is normally filled with traffic during rush hour.

There were plenty of Swifties seen following the Taylor Swift Way signs throughout downtown. Only ticketholders could get near the Rogers Centre before the show – including the city’s unhoused population, who were cleared from encampments and compelled to move to shelters. 

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An official Taylgate event took place at the nearby Metro Toronto Convention Centre with photo ops, silent discos and friendship bracelet making stations. A similar “Swift Station” activation offered similar experiences on Queen Street while decked out to look like a subway station. 

News stations broadcast live from outside the stadium throughout the night, while Swift took the stage inside. Stories abounded about fans who tried and failed to get tickets, or who ended up getting scammed (the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre issued warnings as they were overloaded with complaints). Ticketmaster did, however, release some last minute tickets on the day of the show, though they were gone quickly. 

Inside at the concert, Taylor Swift made some nods to the Canadian crowd. “Doesn’t it seem like the entire Folklore era just belongs in Canada?” she asked before launching into that section of the show. “The place that I envisioned in my mind where Folklore took place, it’s very natural, wilderness, beautiful, forests that have been there since the beginning of time. And it just kind of feels like we’re returning the Folklore era to where it belongs anyway.”

Her dancer, Kam, also added a Canadian touch during “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” with an exaggerated “Soorry aboot it!” during his line. 

There are two more Eras Tour shows this weekend, on Nov. 15 and Nov. 16, before she returns to Rogers Centre next week for shows on Nov. 21, 22 and 23. – Richard Trapunski

Canadian Songwriters Earn Grammy Nominations for Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter

The 2025 Grammy nominations were announced last week, and Beyoncé leads the list — along with her Canadian collaborators.

“Texas Hold ‘Em,” co-written by three Canadians, has been nominated for two of the biggest awards, Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

Writers Nathan Ferraro, Lowell, and Megan Bülow all picked up nominations for Song of the Year, which is awarded to the writers and composers behind the track, as well as Best Country Song. Ferraro talked with Billboard Canada earlier this year about his Canadian writing team. 

“[The collaboration] works well for us,” Ferraro told Billboard Canada. “We’re such good friends and we know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. I think we all have a lot of mutual respect, so we have a lot of confidence together and that allows us to take risks.”

Lowell, meanwhile, won the inaugural Billboard Canada Non-Performing Songwriter Award this summer.

Beyoncé’s country album Cowboy Carter is also nominated for Album of the Year with Canadian Dave Hamelin (formerly of Montreal indie rock band The Stills and now a regular collaborator with 070 Shake) named in the nomination for his work as a producer and songwriter across the album.

In total, Beyoncé picked up a whopping 11 nominations for her history-making Cowboy Carter, which features a slew of Canadian contributions.

Serban Ghenea, meanwhile, racked up the highest number of Canadian nods: a grand total of five nominations, for his work with a trifecta of pop stars: Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift, and Ariana Grande. 

Other Canadian nominees included The Weeknd, Kaytranada, Charlotte Day Wilson, Spiritbox and Cirkut, for his work on Charli XCX’s cultural phenomenon, Brat.

Read about all the Canadian nominees here. –Rosie Long Decter

Quebec Government Pursues Action Against Ticket Resale Site Billets.ca

The Quebec government is taking action against ticket resales.

The province’s Office of Consumer Protection announced Wednesday, Nov. 13, that the Director of Penal and Criminal Prosecutions has served 26 statements of infraction to Billets.ca.

If proven guilty, each infraction could merit a fine between $2,000 and $100,000 for the company, and between $600 and $15,000 for President Éric Bussières.

The Office is accusing Billets.ca of reselling tickets at higher prices than those advertised by authorized salespersons. It also charges that the site is reselling tickets it does not possess. The infractions took place between November 2022 and September 2023.

Ticket resales have become an increasingly hot topic in the industry. Ticketmaster issued a warning in advance of Oasis’ North American tour dates going on sale, advising consumers not to trust resale sites that were already advertising tickets. The ticketing giant has also faced allegations in the past of working with resale sites.

Earlier this year, over 250 artists signed a letter titled Fix the Tix, addressing American legislators. “Predatory resellers have gone unregulated while siphoning money from the live entertainment ecosystem for their sole benefit,” the letter stated.

Quebec’s Loi sur la protection du consommateur forbids sellers from boosting prices during resales without express permission from the original authorized vendor. It also prohibits the use of technology to bypass controls on obtaining tickets. Sites like Billets.ca have often skirted these rules by acting as a broker for individual sellers, instead of selling the tickets themselves.

Quebec music association ADISQ welcomed the news.

“It’s a relief to see charges finally laid against Billets.ca and the practice of fraudulent ticket resale,” says Eve Paré, Executive Director of ADISQ, in French.

ADISQ states that it has made numerous complaints to Quebec’s Office of Consumer Protection regarding unauthorized ticket resales.

ADISQ notes that it is also eagerly awaiting the outcome of a class action lawsuit filed against Billets.ca on October 13, 2023. –RLD

15 Nov 2024

Ariana Grande Corrects Official ‘Wicked’ Lyric Video on ‘Popular’ Mistake

She’ll show you what shoes to wear, how to fix your hair — and while she’s at it, Ariana Grande will also tell you the correct lyrics to her character Glinda’s signature song in Wicked.

Shortly after the fast-approaching musical film shared extended looks at a few of its featured songs on Instagram Wednesday (Nov. 13), the 31-year-old pop star noticed that one of the lyrics to “Popular” was apparently misprinted on the video and quickly pointed out the mistake in the comments. In the clip, the Wicked team had the line in question written as, “I’ll teach you the proper poise when you talk to boys.”

But as Grande corrected: “it’s ‘ploys’ !!!!!! i love you @wickedmovie ??”

Trending on Billboard

The Universal music department also confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that “proper ploys” is the phrase printed in the Wicked sheet music, as personally approved by the original Broadway musical’s composer Stephan Schwartz. At press time, the video with the incorrect version is still live on Wicked‘s socials.

As evidenced by her devotion to the correct lyrics, the “We Can’t Be Friends” singer has been open about how seriously she takes her role in Wicked. Grande trained for months leading up to her very first audition for Glinda in 2021, and during a recent panel at a screening of the movie in Hollywood, she joked that she “might have ended up in an insane asylum” if the opportunity had gone to someone else (though she knew the part “was in the most loving hands” regardless).

On the same day Wicked shared the “Popular” snippet, fans also got a taste of Cynthia Erivo’s rendition of character Elphaba’s knockout number “The Wizard & I.” As sampled in both videos, the two leading ladies sang live vocals on the set of the the Wicked films, the first of which arrives in theaters Nov. 22.

See the “Popular” lyric video — and look out for Grande’s comment — below.

15 Nov 2024

NYPD Indicts 30 Alleged Gang Members Accused Of Causing Half The Shootings In Washington Heights & Inwood

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Guns confiscated from gang members on display during...

Source: Pacific Press / Getty

It’s no secret that crime in New York City began to skyrocket during the COVID pandemic a few years ago. While it has since been declining, things might get a bit safer as authorities have rounded up 30 alleged gang members who turned Washington Heights and Inwood into a war zone.

According to the Gothamist, the NYPD have announced that they have indicted 30 alleged gang members who they say are responsible for roughly half of the shootings in Inwood and Washington Heights and have hit them with a range of charges, including conspiracy to commit violence, weapons possession, attempted murder, and murder. While one might think these are just wild kids looking to gain street credibility, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg says it stems from a yearslong rivalry between two street gangs that turned deadly back in 2018.

Per the Gothamist:

“The violence did not impact just these defendants and their associates,” Bragg said at a news conference detailing the indictment. “It impacted the entire neighborhood, [creating] a climate of fear among ordinary residents who had no part in this violence.”

Bragg said all of the shootings addressed in the charges were sparked by an alleged gang killing in 2018. The incident sparked 18 retaliatory shootings that claimed seven lives, including innocent bystanders, Bragg said.

Bragg blamed the gang war for approximately 50% of all this year’s shootings in the 33rd and 34th precincts, which include much of Washington Heights and Inwood in Uptown Manhattan.

Well, at least the residents of Inwood and Washington Heights can rest a bit easier now knowing that the gang bangers in their neighborhood have been taken into custody, but that PTSD may stay with them for a long time.

Stay safe out on those streets, y’all.

15 Nov 2024

50 Cent Jokes Mike Tyson Is Scaring Kids After Boxer’s Viral Interview With 14-Year-Old Jazzy

Mike Tyson’s gearing up for a return to the ring against YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on Friday night (Nov. 15), and Iron Mike is serving up plenty of viral moments heading into the bout. And unsurprisingly, 50 Cent has some thoughts to share about it.

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It all started when Tyson went deep with 14-year-old interviewer Jazzy when comparing legacy to ego, and how once you’re dead, life is meaningless and it doesn’t matter anymore. “Well, I don’t know. I don’t believe in the word legacy,” Tyson said in the interview posted Thursday (Nov. 14). “I just think that’s another word for ego. Legacy doesn’t mean nothing. That’s just a word everybody grabbed onto. Somebody said that word and everyone grabbed not the word so now it’s used every five seconds. It means absolutely nothing to me.”

Trending on Billboard

The boxing legend continued: “I’m just passing through. I’ma die and it’s gonna be over. Who cares about legacy after that? What a big ego. So I’ma die and I want people to think that I’m this, I’m great? No. We’re nothing. We’re dead. We’re dust. We’re absolutely nothing. Our legacy is nothing.”

Jazzy handled the response well for a teenager, admitting she’d never heard that type of answer to her question.

In another clip from the chat, the teen asked the boxer what he thought of his opponent. “I don’t think much of him,” Tyson admitted, before noting Paul is “very funny.”

The interview quickly spread like wildfire on social media, and 50 — not one to mince words when something gets on his radar — claimed Mike was scaring the kids.

“Goddam it ! Mike ya scaring the kids, WTF chill. Note to self, keep the kids away from Mike,” he wrote to X.

That wasn’t it for headlines for Tyson on Thursday (Nov. 14), as tensions boiled over at the official weigh-ins when Iron Mike took offense to Paul appearing to step on his toes during the face-off, with Mike slapping his opponent across the face.

50 had more jokes, as he reposted an older interview clip of Tyson admitting how much he hates when people step on his feet. “If someone stepped on my feet, I’d totally give up and tap out,” Tyson says in the video.

“See you step on an older man’s feet, and s–t can get crazy. LOL,” 50 added with his caption to the post.

No more talking, as Tyson and Jake Paul will finally step into the ring and fight on Friday night. The boxing main card starts at 8 p.m. ET and is streaming on Netflix.

Watch Tyson’s interview with Jazzy below: