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28 Dec 2022

Theophilus London Reported Missing By Family

Rapper Theophilus London is missing, according to a statement released by his family on Wednesday (Dec. 28). The 25-year-old artist from Trinidad and Tobago was last spoken to in July 2022 in Los Angeles, according to the statement received by Billboard.

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London’s family members also revealed that they traveled to Los Angeles on Tuesday (Dec. 27) after trying to “piece together his whereabouts,” and went on to file a missing persons report with the LAPD. They ask that anyone with information about London to contact the LAPD or London’s cousin, Mikhail Noel, on Instagram at @iamdjkellz.

“Theo, your Dad loves you, son. We miss you. And all your friends and relatives are searching for you. Wherever you are send us some signal. No matter what we will come get you son,” the rapper’s father, Lary Moses London, wrote in the statement.

Throughout his decade-long career, London has released three studio albums and worked with high-profile artists like Kanye West, Travis Scott, Tame Impala, Ellie Goulding, Big Boi and more. His most recent album, Bebey, was released in January 2020.

Read London’s family’s full statement below.

Over the last few weeks, friends and family of Theophilus London have been working together to piece together his whereabouts. The last time someone spoke with him reportedly stretches back to July 2022 in Los Angeles.

On December 27th, family members of Theophilus London traveled to Los Angeles to file a missing persons report with the LAPD. They are now seeking the public’s help with any information as to London’s whereabouts:

“Theo, your Dad loves you, son. We miss you. And all your friends and relatives are searching for you. Wherever you are send us some signal. No matter what we will come get you son.” – Lary Moses London, father of Theophilus London

London is 35 years old, Black, 6’2″, 175 pounds, with dark brown eyes. If you have any information regarding his whereabouts or well-being, please reach out to his cousin Mikhail Noel at his instagram account @iamdjkellz, or the LAPD.

28 Dec 2022

A Figure Skater Just Recreated Wednesday Addams‘ ’Goo Goo Muck’ Dance on Ice

Kamila Valieva took the 2023 Russian Figure Staking Championships by storm last week by performing a routine to The Cramps‘ “Goo Goo Muck” dressed as Wednesday Addams.

Starting outside the edge of the rink, the 16-year-old sensation nailed her recreation of the herky-jerky dance on the Jenna Ortega-led Netflix series — all the way down to the hand motions, gothic party dress and long black pigtails.

“When the sun goes down and the moon comes up/ I turn into a teenage goo goo muck/ Yeah, I cruise through the city and I roam the streets/ Looking for something that is nice to eat,” Lux Interior’s voice sang as Valieva executed the choreography flawlessly and the audience in the stands clapped along to the beat.

Then, halfway through the program, Valieva went full TikTok as the music abruptly changed to the sped-up version of Lady Gaga‘s Born This Way album cut “Bloody Mary” and she ended the routine with a flourish.

Ultimately, Valieva took home the silver in the women’s senior championship division just behind 15-year-old Sofia Akateva. Between her short program and free skate, Valieva earned a total of 247.32 points from the judges, with her free skate even coming in at the top of the pack.

In early December, Gaga even got in on the viral fun by performing the dance challenge on her official TikTok page while Dino, Mingyu and Joshua of SEVENTEEN ran through the moves while attending LA3C with Billboard‘s own Tetris Kelly.

Watch Valieva’s Wednesday Addams-inspired routine below.

28 Dec 2022

2022 Kennedy Center Honors: How to Watch & Stream for Free

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The 45th annual Kennedy Center Honorswill air on Wednesday (Dec. 28) at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and stream on Paramount+.

The list of esteemed honorees include Gladys Knight, Amy Grant, U2, George Clooney and Tania León, a Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, conductor and educator.

The 2022 Kennedy Center Honors ceremony was held at the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 4. Read on for on ways to watch and stream for free.

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How to Watch the 45th Annual Kennedy Center Honors for Free

This year’s Kennedy Center Honors ceremony will premiere Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CBS, and will stream for Paramount+ Premium subscribers. If you don’t already have access to CBS, you can stream live channels with a free trial from Fubo, Direct TV Stream and other platforms that offer live TV.

Paramount+ Premium is $9.99 a month after a free trial for the first week. The subscription gets you commercial-free access to the streaming library and local CBS stations.

Paramount+ Premium

$9.99/month after free 7-day trial

Paramount+ has an Essential plan for $4.99/month and annual plans starting at just $24.99/month (regular $49.99/month) for a limited time only. There’s also a Showtime bundle for $11.99/month or $59.99/year under the current 50% off promo, and if you’re a student, you might be eligible to receive a 25% discount (Paramount+ is also available on Prime Video).

From movies and acclaimed original series to live sports, music and more, Paramount+ gives you plenty of bang for your buck. The lineup of exclusives streaming at no additional charge includes The Game, 1923, Tulsa King, Ink Master, Mayor of Kingstown, Seal Team, Star Trek: Prodigy Star Trek: Picard, RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, iCarly and Top Gun: Maverick.

Music lovers will find tons of fascinating specials and documentaries, including Behind the Music, Homeward Bound: A Grammy Salute to the Songs of Paul Simon, Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to All!, Liam Gallagher: Nebworth 22, From Cradle to Stage, Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concert and the 65th annual Grammy Awards airing on Feb. 6, 2023.

Watch the video below to see highlights from the 45th annual Kennedy Center Honors.

28 Dec 2022

Dionne Warwick Has Some Big Questions for Elon Musk Over Twitter Changes: ‘Where’s Your Head?’

Dionne Warwick used her title as the unofficial queen of Twitter to say she still wants a meeting with Elon Musk in a new interview on Wednesday (Dec. 28).

“I’m going to find out what Mr. Musk has in mind,” she told The Los Angeles Times when asked about the social platform’s recent controversial changes. “I’m hoping to have a meeting with him. I want to ask him, ‘Where’s your head? Where are you going with this?’ Lots of people have jumped off, and I want to find out what he’s thinking before I decide to stay on. Or leave.”

The vocal legend, who has more than 610,600 Twitter followers, further elucidated that her primary concerns with how the billionaire has been running the site since his takeover include “inviting everybody who was crazy to come on back, the disregard for what social media is all about.”

Later in the interview, Warwick also reflected on the changes she’s witnessed in former friend Donald Trump. “Oh, my goodness. I don’t know who this man is. He’s not the person I met many, many years ago, the one I knew when I performed at his casinos or his houses,” she told the paper. “I don’t know what happened to him. To me, he’s a frightening entity. I distance myself from people like that.”

Meanwhile, the singer’s new documentary, Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over, is set to debut on CNN Sunday (Jan. 1), and will tell the story of her life and career from the days of working with Burt Bacharach and Hal David to the present. Quincy Jones, Alicia Keys, Snoop Dogg, Olivia Newton-John and former president Bill Clinton are among the talking heads who offer their perspectives on Warwick’s legacy throughout the film.

28 Dec 2022

Chrissy Teigen Shares Adorable Throwback Photos of John Legend & He Looks Exactly Like His Son

John Legend turned 44 years old on Wednesday (Dec. 28), and the “All of Me” singer’s wife Chrissy Teigen wished her longtime love a happy birthday with a series of throwback photos.

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“happy birthday to the best man everyone knows. we love you too much!!!” the model captioned the snaps of Legend as a child, in which he looks identical to the couple’s four-year-old son, Miles.

Legend and Teigen share Miles and his older sister, six-year-old Luna, with a fourth child on the way after the Cravings author suffered a pregnancy loss with baby Jack in September 2020. The longtime couple were married in 2013 after first meeting in 2006 on the set of the video for Legend’s “Stereo” single.

“Like I said with Chrissy, I’ve seen so much growth through our grief and through our tragedy,” the singer recently shared on the On Purpose With Jay Shetty podcast of the devastating pregnancy loss. “It’s always going to be a part of who we are and I’m fine with that. It’s part of who we are. We carry it with us and it’s OK.” He said you have to commit to the hard work necessary to get through the pain, something the couple are both ready to do.

“Like doing the work that we needed to do to get through it. And I think having, already had two kids together was definitely helpful because they just bring so much joy into our lives and laughter and fun and they’re great focus for our energy,” he said of daughter Luna, 6 and son Miles, 4. “And even when you’re going through deep grief on losing a pregnancy you still have these two beautiful babies that you love, and I think that was certainly helpful.” 

28 Dec 2022

Daddy Yankee’s Farewell Tour Wraps As His Biggest Ever With $198 Million in the Bank

Among the most prominent Latin stars of the 21st century, Daddy Yankee has played the final shows of his farewell tour, ending at Miami’s FTX Arena on Thursday night (Dec. 22). According to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore, La Ultima Vuelta World Tour wrapped with $197.8 million and 1.9 million tickets sold over 83 shows in 2022. That makes it the biggest tour of his career, by a long shot.

The tour kicked off at Denver’s Ball Arena on July 25, and played 33 shows until finishing its first leg at Madison Square Garden. The U.S. and Canada run earned $61.6 million and sold 376,000 tickets before venturing to Latin America.

There, Yankee hit 22 Spanish-speaking markets and earned $112.7 million and sold 1.383 million tickets. He then closed the tour with 12 additional American shows, adding $23.4 million and 143,000 tickets to the final count.

With something of a home-field (or language) advantage, Latin American shows averaged $3 million and 36,000 tickets in mostly stadiums, compared to $1.9 million and 12,000 tickets in mostly domestic arenas.

Yankee’s geographical divide is in contrast with that of the year’s other major Latin tour from Bad Bunny. With more significant crossover success in recent years, Bad Bunny paced a similar 40,000-plus attendance in both territories but earned nearly three times more per show in the U.S. and Canada because of more elastic ticket scaling.

Bad Bunny and Daddy Yankee played a major role in lifting promoter Cardenas Marketing Network to No. 3 on the year-end Top Promoters ranking. After the final show in Miami, Henry Cardenas reflected to Billboard via email on the impact of Yankee’s final tour and touring career that started on day one.

“It was an unforgettable tour for me and for the entire CMN team. Having produced the farewell tour of the icon and influencer of an entire generation is one of the greatest accomplishments that our company has achieved. In 2005 we were the producers of his first tour, Barrio Fino, and today we say goodbye to him in La Ultima Vuelta. I thank Raymond and Mireddys for giving us the opportunity to be part of this dream that is now a reality and for allowing us to be direct witnesses of their great legacy.”

The La Ultima Vuelta World Tour was 2022’s second-biggest tour in Latin America, besting Bad Bunny’s $80 million-plus total, but falling short of Coldplay’s $127.9 million from two separate legs of Music of the Spheres Tour.

Still, Yankee’s nearly $2 million average in the states on a robust 45-date routing made for a gargantuan global total. Excluding Latin American dates, La Ultima Vuelta World Tour represents a leap of more than 100% from his previous nightly best. All shows considered, he’s up by 162%.

Regardless of geography or genre, Daddy Yankee finished at No. 13 on the year-end Top Tours chart, ranking artists on their concert business between Nov. 1, 2021-Oct. 31, 2022. On Billboard’s monthly Top Tours chart, he’s climbed from No. 22 in July to No. 9 to No. 5 and, for October and November, to No. 3 (December’s ranking will publish next month).

Further, in the calendar year of 2022, Daddy Yankee has the sixth-highest grossing tour worldwide, behind Bad Bunny, Elton John, Coldplay, Ed Sheeran and Harry Styles.

And even beyond his year-end achievements, La Ultima Vuelta World Tour finishes as the second-highest grossing Latin tour in Boxscore history, sandwiched between Bad Bunny’s World’s Hottest Tour ($314.1 million) and El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo ($116.8 million).

28 Dec 2022

Jo Mersa Marley, Grandson Of Bob Marley, Dead At 31

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2019 Caribbean Village Festival

Source: Johnny Louis / Getty

The reggae world is in shock as Jo Mersa Marley, the grandson of the legendary Bob Marley has been reported dead at the age of 31.

According to reports, a representative for the young singer confirmed his passing to Rolling Stone. This was after Kingston, Jamaica-based journalist Abka Fitz-Henley first reported on the passing via his Twitter account, stating that Marley had passed away in the U.S. after being “found unresponsive in a vehicle.” He leaves behind a wife and daughter.

WZPP, a South Florida radio station, would report on the “Burn It Down” singer’s death in a post on Instagram stating that it was due to an asthma attack without adding further details. Marley’s representative did not provide further comment when first contacted by the press.

The grandson of Bob and Rita Marley and son of Stephen Marley, Jo Mersa was born Joseph Marley March 12 in Kingston, Jamaica. He moved to Florida during his high school years and studied audio engineering at Miami Dade College. He made his musical debut in 2010 on the song “My Girl,” a collaborative track with his cousin, Daniel Bambaataa Marley. He would go on to release an EP entitled Comfortable in 2014 and release his debut album Eternal in 2021.

In an interview with Rolling Stone at the time of his debut, the young Marley spoke about his iconic grandfather and family legacy. “I am one of the new generation of Marleys, but I am still experimenting at the same time,” he said, adding: “My plan is to do something new with my roots.”

In another interview with the outlet Reggaeville in 2021, he would talk further about that impact. “We always hear those reflections, speaking about those things, about the role that he played not only as family member and father, but also in the world and the impact he had on the Reggae community and the Reggae culture, the roots, bringing forward the message of Rastafari and love, over all love.”

28 Dec 2022

NYC Mayor Adams Defends Virgin Islands Vacay Before Impending Winter Storm

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Mayor of New York Eric Adams during the meeting with...

Source: Pacific Press / Getty

Mayor Eric Adams hasn’t met a scandal that he couldn’t avoid. This time, the cop-turned-politician is answering to questions about his decision to go on vacay just before a winter storm was set to hit the city he’s in charge of over the Christmas holiday weekend.

Apparently, while the mayor’s office didn’t let the public know his whereabouts, it turns out he was in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Reports Gothamist:

The mayor revealed his weekend whereabouts at an unrelated press conference Tuesday evening after his office hid them from the public for days. Adams stood by his decision to leave town and said he was mourning his mother during his second Christmas without her.

“After 365 days of commitment to this city, I decided to take two days to reflect on mommy. And to watch how you responded to my two days out of this city was really alarming,” the mayor told reporters after someone asked where he had been over the holiday weekend. “I deserve a good work-life balance like you do.”

Hey, everyone needs time off, right?

However, a public official essentially telling his office to cover for him doesn’t exactly lend to transparency. Nevertheless, Adams insisted he followed protocol and just wanted some time to reflect on the loss of his mother.

Adams asked for sympathy from the city press corps as he noted that, in the past year, he has dealt with killings, fires and police officers dying — all without his parents. His mother died in 2021 while he was campaigning for mayor.

“If I take time off to get my mental capacity together, so I can take the city through the crisis, I deserve those two days,” the mayor said.

Adams added that he had followed City Charter rules, which place the first deputy mayor in charge in the mayor’s absence.

Considering New York City press, it was a lose, lose situation for Mayor Adams no matter what he did.

Just saying.

28 Dec 2022

Usher Mourns His Grandmother Tina Carter in Emotional Tribute: ‘I Feel a Bit Lost Right Now’

Usher is mourning the loss of his grandmother Ernestine “Tina” Carter, who died at age 87 on Christmas Eve at her residence in Chattanooga, Tenn. The R&B singer reflected on in her death in an emotional post shared to his Instagram on Tuesday (Dec. 27).

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“It’s taken me a few days to come to grips with the fact that my Grandma Tina is no longer with me. I’m praying for clarity and strength for all whom relied on her,” he began in his message. “Her daily devotion was to help those in need and she did just that. It was her life’s work. She was truly a prayer warrior for me and so many others. I feel a bit lost right now.”

The “Caught Up” singer also revealed the details of his final conversation with Carter. “Her last words to me were, ‘There’s a time for everything son …there’s a time to laugh, a time to cry…there’s a time to live and a time to die,’” he shared. “When I was broken, confused, lost and most vulnerable. She saw something else…and was there to remind me of purpose, and that no matter what I was facing. I love u more, she would say.”

The post features a series of sweet snaps of the star dancing with his grandmother, praying and sharing embraces.

“I need you right now more than ever Grandma,” Usher noted. “Just to hear u one more time. Missin u. I celebrate u and your life!!”

The post comes days after Usher shared a snap of his family wearing matching pajamas and Santa hats on Christmas Day. He captioned that message, “Family is all that matters. Blessings the ones that are here and the ones that watch over us!! Jesus is the reason, GOD Bless you this holiday season. From my family to yours.”

See Usher’s emotional tribute below:

28 Dec 2022

There’s a Britney Spears Edition of Monopoly: Where to Buy the Collectible Board Game Online

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Monopoly remixed its classic board game in honor of Britney Spears. Monopoly: Britney Spears edition celebrates the pop star’s “musical journey” by taking fans on a nostalgic trek through her iconic career, showcasing the multiplatinum selling singer’s biggest hits.

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The game comes complete with custom tokens inspired by her chart-topping singles, while images of Spears, seemingly representing different phases of her career, cover the outside of the box.

Inside, players will find a colorful board with the same photo of Spears featured on the packaging along with photos of her album covers, live performances, costumes and more.

Players can buy, sell and trade properties named after pop classics such as “Baby One More Time,” “Circus” and “Toxic” while racking up Gold and Platinum records (cards) as they make their way around the board in one of the six Spears-inspired tokens. The last player standing, with custom Britney currency in hand, wins the game.

The tokens include an astronaut from the “Oops!…I Did It Again” music video, a mirror from “Lucky,” a milkshake tray from “Crazy,” a lion from “Circus”, a basketball representing “Baby One More Time” and a miniature version of the pillbox hat that Spears wore in “Toxic.”

Monopoly’s Chance and Community Chest cards have been replaced with Curious and Fantasy cards named after Spears’ best-selling fragrances.

Monopoly: Britney Spears edition is designed for 2 to 6 players, ages 8 and up. The collectible board game is currently sold out at The Op Games, but it’s available at major retailers such as Amazon and Walmart while supplies last.

Purchase the Spears edition of Monopoly below.

The Op Games

Monopoly: Britney Spears | Collector’s Edition

$44.99 $59.95 25% OFF