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Georgette Jones already has strong ties to the Showtime limited series George & Tammy: Not only is it about her parents and based on the book she wrote, but she also appears in the final episode.
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Jones makes a cameo as a backup singer in the finale airing Sunday. In an exclusive clip provided to The Hollywood Reporter, she appears on a tour bus with band members, as well as Jessica Chastain and Michael Shannon in the roles of Tammy Wynette and George Jones. Together they sing “Lost Highway,” with Georgette Jones kicking off the second verse.
The 52-year-old daughter of the country music legends said as she was preparing to visit the set of the series, producers asked her if she’d want to make an appearance.
“I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh. I am not an actress but I will happily pretend to be one,’” Jones tells THR. “If they want to put me somewhere — it would be so much fun to be able to do that.”
George & Tammy is based on her 2011 memoir, The Three of Us: Growing Up With Tammy and George. She said filming her scenes was fun and pleasant — but also sentimental.
“I was swept up in a very emotional state of mind during the whole thing. It was strange, knowing that I’m on a simulated bus with what’s supposed to be my parents and their band, but at the same moment, being able to see the scene play out and know what’s happening, listening to the music and listening to the words of the song, and knowing how this is ending the series — it was very, very emotional,” Jones says. “I think it hit me full swing when we finished filming it. I just broke down at the end because it was just a release of all that emotion building up for that scene.”
The six-episode show debuted in December. It chronicles Wynette and George Jones’ complicated yet stirring relationship and the hits they produced, including Wynette’s signature classic, “Stand by Your Man.”
Jones says playing a backup singer for her parents onscreen was something she was used to doing in real life.
“I actually spent a summer working as a backup singer for my mom when I was starting college,” she recalls. “I have all these memories of — not just working for Mom then — but growing up on the road with one or both of my parents at different times. So I was flooded with a lot of memories of being on the bus and remembering those types of events.”
Chastain’s performance in George & Tammy earned her a nomination for best actress in a limited series at the 2023 Golden Globes, which take place Tuesday. Jones says she approved of Chastain and Shannon’s portrayals of her parents.
“I think they did an incredible job. I really, really do — both with the music and with the acting,” she says.
“Jessica has really been our champion for this entire process,” Jones continues of the Oscar winner, who also serves as an executive producer on the series. “I’m so thankful that she not only signed on, but stuck with it. And there were times where different people at different times, before we got to where we were in the end, were trying to suggest things and wanted it to go in a different direction. And Jessica and [show creator] Abe [Sylvia] and [EP] Andrew [Lazar] all really pushed for an honest portrayal, not just some of the glamorous things on the road. And it meant a lot to me that she pushed for that. She wanted us to have an accurate and real story of my mom and my dad.”
This article originally appeared in THR.com.
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Undefeated boxers Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Hector Louise Garcia are set to take the ring this weekend.
The two will face off in a WBA title match at the Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. on Saturday (Jan. 7). The fight will stream live on Showtime at 9 p.m. ET.
Davis, a 28-year-old five-time world champion and Garcia, a 31-year-old WBA Super Featherweight World Champion, are evenly matched when it comes to reach and weight, plus they’re both Southpaws, but Garcia is around four inches taller than Davis. As far as boxing stats go, Garcia has a 16-0-0 record and Davis is 27-0-0.
Read on for details on how to order and stream the PPV fight.
Davis vs. Garcia PPV: When & How to Stream from Any Device
The main card is scheduled to start at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and you don’t need to be subscribed to Showtime to tune in. The PPV fight costs $74.99.
Davis vs. Garcia Boxing Match $74.99
Stream on Showtime.com or the Showtime App from any compatible device (smart TV, laptop, phone, etc.).
Watching from the U.K.? The Davis vs. Garcia fight will stream on Fite TV in the U.K. (main card starts at 2 a.m. GMT).
The fight card currently listed on Showtime.com includes Jaron Ennis vs. Karen Chukhadzhian, Rashidi Eillis vs. Roimann Villa and Demetrius Andrade vs. Demond Nicholson.
Although Showtime isn’t required to watch the PPV fight, if you’re thinking about joining the platform’s 30-day free trial and then $3.99 for your first six months ends Jan. 23.
From boxing to MMA events, exclusive shows and must-watch movies, Showtime is perfect for TV lovers who like variety. Watch original series such as George & Tammy, The Affair, American Gigolo, Billions, The Chi and Boys in Blue and more on Showtime.
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
There’s a new Ring camera dropping soon, and it’s designed for your car. The Ring Car Cam, which was unveiled at CES 2023 this week, currently retails for $199.99 and features two wide-angle facing cameras with night vision that detect and records movements.
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Like with the other Ring cameras, users will receive real-time alerts when motion is detected. Other cool features, such as Live View and Two-Way Talk in the Ring App, lets you to talk with anyone in your car virtually when it’s parked and connected to your home wifi or LTE.
Get access to 180-day cloud storage when the car is away from your home WiFi and locate it with built-in GPS. If the car is parked, the camera won’t record unless the smart censor detects an “event” or when you activate Live View.
Ring Car Cam is equipped with Alexa technology that allows you to start recording with the sound of your voice and a built-in privacy cover allows you to block the cabin-facing camera, which also electronically shuts off the microphone. The voice control feauture “is particularly helpful if you’re pulled over, or in the case of a fender bender where you want to record the interaction while exchanging information,” per the Ring blog.
If you want to get the Ring Cam for less than $200, you’ll have to act fast, as the price will increase to $249.99 after Jan. 31. The Dash Cam will begin shipping on Feb. 15.
Unfortunately, Car Cam doesn’t work with every vehicle. Some of the incompatible cars include Acura MDX (2006-2022), Honda CR-V (Ice/Hybrid, 2006-20016), 2013 BM F10, 2015 and 2017 Buick Regal, Tesla Model Y (2017-present), Tesla Model 3 (2020-present), 2021 Jeep Wrangler Sport, 2021 Mercedes GLE, 450 and Porsche 911. Click here for a full list of vehicles.
Pre-order the Ring Dash Cam below.
Courtesy of Amazon
Introducing Ring Car Cam – Dash cam with dual-facing HD cameras, Live View, Two-Way Talk, and motion detection
$199.99
RuPaul’s Drag Race is back for another lap! Season 15 of the hit series premieres on VH1 on Friday (Jan. 6) at 8 p.m. ET.
Ariana Grande will join as a guest judge for the two-episode season premiere, while Michelle Visage, Carson Kressley and Ross Mathews return as mainstays and Ts Madison is a rotating judge this season.
With the finale just hours away, fans can still catch up on their favorite queens just in time for the new season. See below for how to watch and stream RuPaul’s Drag Race online.
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How to Watch RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Season 15
Althrough previous season of RuPaul’s Drag Race have aired on VH1 and Logo, the new season will broadcast exclusively on MTV and stream on MTV.com.
Can I Watch RuPaul’s Drag Race for Free?
Yes! If you don’t already have MTV through a cable, satellite or a streaming subscription, sign up for a free trial to Philo for just $25/month after your first free week.
Philo, which offers more than 60 channels and unlimited DVR, is currently offering a seven-day free trial here, so you can stream RuPaul’s Drag Race and more. Want to save on your streaming bill? T-Mobile has a deal that gives you an even deeper discount on Philo for a year.
Philo $25/month
You can also find a free trial through Fubo TV, Direct TV Stream and Verizon Fios. Other ways to watch and stream Ru-Paul’s Drag Race: Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV and Verizon Fios.
Additionally, the newest season of RuPaul’s Drag Race will be available to stream on Prime Video along with the previous seasons that you can stream right now and on Vudu.
How to Watch All Seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race and RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars
RuPaul’s Drag Race and All Stars are available to stream online via a number of streaming services, such as Philo, Paramount+ and Hulu.
Not familiar with Paramount+? The ViacomCBS’s streaming service launched in 2021, replacing CBS All Access. When you sign up for a 30-day free trial to Prime Video, you can also get a seven-day free trial to Paramount+ that will be billed through your Amazon Prime account.
New Hulu subscribers can choose between Hulu with or without ads to watch RuPaul’s Drag Race online. Alternatively, the Hulu + Live TV package offers customers 85+ live channels, including MTV. Sign up for Hulu here.
Who’s on This Season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars?
This season’s queens vying for the ultimate title of “America’s Next Drag Superstar” and a grand prize of $200,000 include Amethyst, Anetra, Aura Mayari, Irene Dubois, Jax, Loosey LaDuca, Luxx Noir London, Malaysia Babydoll Foxx, Marcia Marcia Marcia, Mistress Isabelle Brooks, Princess Poppy, Robin Fierce, Salina EsTitties, Sasha Colby, Sugar and Spice.
Your nightmares have been answered. Netflix confirmed on Friday (Jan. 6) that its massive hit series Wednesday will return for a second season on the streamer. Though a date has not yet been announced for season 2, in an interview with Tudum, creators/executive producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar talked about bringing back Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) for another go.
“We can’t wait to dive headfirst into another season and explore the kooky, spooky world of Nevermore,” showrunners Millar and Gough exclusively told the Netflix news site. “We just need to make sure Wednesday hasn’t emptied the pool first.”
The news came along with a video trailer teasing the return cued to the viral TikTok hit launched by Wednesday’s dance to The Cramps’ 1981 single “Goo Goo Muck,” which inspired users to swap in Lady Gaga‘s 2011 Born This Way deep cut “Bloody Mary.” In the 45-second clip, perennially dyspeptic teen detective Wednesday recaps being hunted by monsters, haunted by ghosts and mocked on the internet.
“It’s been pure torture,” she says grinning as the sped-up version of Gaga’s “Mary” swells in the background and the screen reads, “More misery is coming.”
“[Wednesday] sticks to her guns, and she’s not out to please anybody,” Ortega told Tudum of the series that smashed records for Netflix, with 411.29 million hours viewed in its second week, 22 billion views on TikTok and 1.237 billion hours viewed, making it the second most-popular English-language hit in the streamer’s history. “Which, as someone who used to be an immense people pleaser, I really respect.”
The viral “Bloody Mary” phenomenon helped push the Gaga track into the top 40 of the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart las month despite it not being featured in the series proper; the revamped dance sequence also helped propel “Bloody” onto the Billboard Global 200. The trend blew up so big, in fact, that even Mother Monster got in on the action, posting a black and white response video in early December in which she slips into the signature Wednesday Addams look and dancing with her hands, hands, hands.
“It’s been incredible to create a show that’s connected with people across the world,” Millar and Gough said while (spoiler alert) hinting that the stalker running around Nevermore in the season one finale remains a threat to Addams. “We’re thrilled to continue Wednesday’s torturous journey into Season 2.” Millar and Gough said that casting and plot news will be revealed at a later date.
Check out the video below.
Happy New Year! Celebrate everything 2023 with some new releases from some of your favorite queer artists this week. Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of First Out, our weekly roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.
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From Sigala & MNEK’s thumping new single, to a whole new album from the Queen of Queens RuPaul, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:
Sigala & MNEK, “Radio”
It may be the dead of winter, but British DJ Sigala and singer-songwriter extraordinaire MNEK are ready to give you pure summer vibes on their new track. “Radio,” the latest single to come off of Sigala’s upcoming album, bounces with a French disco flair and a deep house beat, while MNEK’s signature silky vocals glide over the beats, singing about wanting to be with someone based the the song they’re jamming out to. Sure, it’s cold outside, but that’s no reason to not dance like it’s the summertime to this absolute banger.
RuPaul, Black Butta
Whenever RuPaul debuts a new album, she tends to lean into one flavor of her ever-changing style. On Black Butta, the flavor-of-the-year is pure R&B ecstasy — Ru largely doesn’t aim for the burn-the-club-down highs of past hits like “Sissy That Walk” or “Supermodel (You Better Work),” but instead goes for a more tender, sensual vibe. That manifests itself well, as Ru lets her voice croon on standouts like “A.S.M.R. Lover,” while occasionally going for bigger moments, like with the titular rap track.
Joesef, Borderline
Simply put, singer-songwriter Joesef is at his career-best with his latest EP. Borderline serves largely as a quiet collection of separate heartbreaks, as Joesef’s incredibly fine-tuned vocal gives you a first-person tour of his broken heart. That’s particularly true on the project’s title track, in which the crisp clear vocal contrasts perfectly with a blurrier guitar line, Joesef is at peak performance, as he sings, “Baby hold me close cause I don’t want to fight/ Cause I want you all the time.”
Kamaiyah, “Thru the Week”
Looking for a thesis statement for your 2023? Rapper Kamaiyah is here to offer you some assistance on “Thru the Week,” a bouncing rap track dedicated to chasing dollar bills and putting toxic people behind you. The rapper’s vocals and flow remain as sharp as ever, while the grooving production keeps you bouncing in your seat as you bob along to this declaration of unfiltered confidence.
Hyphen Hyphen, “Own God”
French electro-pop trio Hyphen Hyphen are ready to lean into their pop-rock roots on their newest single. With a shimmering guitar hook and delicious bassline, “Own God” is the perfect spark for those in need of a mood boost as we face down the New Year — why wait around for good things, the song asks, when you can make the change you want to see yourself? Of course, the trio phrases it in a much catchier turn of phrase: “I’ll be my own god/ I’m a believer.”
No major spoilers, but if you tuned in to the second season of HBO’s hit vacation nightmare series White Lotus you may have missed a super low-key guest appearance from Oscar-winning actress Laura Dern. On Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday night (Jan. 5), the host asked Dern to describe how she ended up making a hush-hush cameo on the series.
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And, of course, what it’s like to be spotted by Taylor Swift fans in the wild thanks to her role in the singer’s “Bejweled” video.
“Recorded from the closet of my room,” Dern said of the secret bit she laid down as a favor to her old friend, Lotus writer and creator Mike White, who previously teamed up with Dern on his previous HBO series, Enlightened. As explained by Kimmel, Dern had an uncredited voice role as star Michael Imperioli’s estranged wife, who is heard, but never seen, in the show.
“It was amazing,” Dern said of the drop-in. “I loved literally recording into my phone and him saying, ‘just go to town, be as angry as you want.’” Dern said she didn’t tell anyone about phoning it in, but noted that her son figure it out when they watched the show together.
Kimmel also asked Dern about her on-screen cameo as the evil stepmother to the Haim sisters in Taylor Swift’s Cinderella-inspired “Bejeweled” video. “Taylor asked me and it sounded like such an incredible time and I was amazed by what a great filmmaker she is, how prepared she was, how improvisational and fun it was. I had the time of my life,” Dern said of Swift’s turn as a director on the shoot for the song from her Midnights album.
Sure, it was fun and tens of millions of people saw the video, but Dern noted that on a recent trip to Hawaii with family she happened to be standing near a sign for a tour of scenes from the Jurassic Park series — Dern has appeared in three films in the series — when a Swiftie spotted her in the wold. Not wanting to do the “whole Jurassic Park thing” while trying to enjoy a vacay with her family, Dern was expecting the girl to ask for a selfie with legendary paleobotanist Dr. Ellie Sattler.
Instead, the fan squealed, “‘Oh my God! Oh my God! Aren’t you the girl in the Taylor Swift video?’” A good sport, Dern said she agreed to a photo marking her pivotal role as a Swift-adjacent actress, which, of course, was framed with the “Welcome to Jurassic Park” sign in the background.
Watch Dern on Kimmel below.
Legendary Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto has signed on to write the music for Palme d’Or-winning director Hirokazu Kore-eda’s forthcoming feature film Monster (Kaibutsu), Tokyo-based production company Gaga Corporation revealed Thursday.
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Sakamoto will provide newly written compositions as well as some of his pre-existing music for the film, producers say. A musical polymath, Sakamoto made his film debut with the iconic score for Nagisa Oshima’s Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983), starring David Bowie. He later won an Oscar with his music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor (1987) and a Golden Globe nomination for his compositions for Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s The Revenant (2015). The partnership with Kore-eda marks his first work on a high-profile Japanese title in some time.
Monster is also Kore-eda’s first Japanese film since he won the Cannes Palme d’Or in 2018 with Shoplifters. It follows the director’s French film The Truth, which opened the Venice Film Festival in 2019, and his Korean title Broker, released earlier this year.
Story details for Monster are being kept under wraps, but Gaga revealed Thursday that Sakura Ando, the breakout star of Shoplifters, will lead the new film’s cast. Rounding out the cast are Nagayama Eita (Hokusai), Mitsuki Takahata (Japanese Girls Never Die), Akihiro Kakuta (Spring Has Come), Shido Nakamura (Twisted Justice), Yuko Tanaka (Midnight Diner), and child actors Soya Kurokawa and Hinata Hiiragi.
Currently in postproduction, Monster will release in Japan on June 2. The release date sets the film up for a potential world premiere in May at Cannes, where Kore-eda is a regular.
Monster will be the second movie directed by Kore-eda that he didn’t also write himself, following Maborosi, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival way back in 1995. The new film is scripted by Yuji Sakamoto, the writer of such Japanese TV series hits Mother, Woman and Matrimonial Chaos. Prolific writer-director Genki Kawamura, whose directorial effort A Hundred Flowers recently won best director at the San Sebastián festival, is lead producer of Monster.
This article originally appeared in THR.com.
Attention, Navy: Rihanna‘s Amazon documentary could be coming out any day now — but of course, the last person who gets to hit the “approve for release” button is the Bad Gal herself.
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Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published Thursday (Jan. 5), Peter Berg — director of Friday Night Lights, Lone Survivor and more — gave an update on the long-awaited Rihanna documentary filk that has been more than six years in the making.
According to Berg, the only thing left to do is “waiting for her to approve it. It’s done and sold, and Amazon’s ready.” He continued, “She’s a perfectionist, so we keep adding. It’s been six and a half years of filming, so, yeah, it’s ready to come out. We’re just waiting on her to say, ‘Yeah, let’s do it.’ I don’t know. Maybe it’ll be a 10-year project.”
While it’s possible that the “Work” singer will want to extend the project, Berg is not worried about Rihanna giving the green light. When asked if there were any concerns about the singer not approving the documentary, Berg replied, “Not really.”
The Friday Night Lights director also revealed that he was surprised Rihanna wanted him to direct her documentary film. “When Rihanna asked me to make a doc, I thought she was joking. My work tends to be a bit more masculine, at least on the surface. But this has allowed me to dip in and out of her life while I’m doing other things,” he said. “I’ve loved it — watching her in the studio, seeing her turn Fenty into this billion-dollar entity and, now, being a mom. It’s such an enriching experience, I don’t really care how long it takes.”
News of the documentary first arose in 2016, and by 2019, it was publicized that the documentary sold to Amazon for $25 million. The untitled doc, which will be narrowed down from over 1,200 hours of footage as of 2019, will serve as an unfiltered look into Rihanna’s life and a glimpse into the evolution of one of the world’s most well-known pop artists. Berg and Rihanna previously worked together on Universal’s Battleship.
Coming out can be a strange experience for queer folks — but as Noah Schnapp can now attest, Stranger Things have happened.
In a TikTok posted Thursday (Jan. 5), the Stranger Things actor revealed that he identifies as gay. Lip-syncing along with another creator’s sound saying “You know what it never was? That serious,” Schnapp wrote a message over the video saying, “When I finally told my friends and family that I was gay after being scared in the closet for 18 years, and all they said was ‘we know.’”
In a caption for his post, the actor kept the mood light, writing “I guess I’m more similar to Will than I thought.” The comment references a scene from season 4 of Stranger Things, in which it appeared that Schnapp’s character, Will Byers, was admitting his love for his best friend, Mike Wheeler. Following fan speculation from the scene, Schnapp told Variety that there was no question about Will’s sexuality: “It’s 100% clear that he is gay and he does love Mike.”
The actor made headlines in 2022 when he revealed an online exchange he had with Doja Cat, wherein the “Woman” singer asked him to set her up with co-star Joseph Quinn. Doja would later go on to call Schnapp posting their conversation “borderline snake sh–,” before Schnapp later revealed that he had spoken with and apologized to the rapper. “Everything is all good I apologized and I still follow her and love her music,” he wrote on TikTok.
Check out Schnapp’s coming-out video below: