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The owner of the Jet Set nightclub in the Dominican Republic was arrested last week and charged with involuntary homicide over the tragic roof collapse on April 8 where 235 people died and nearly 200 more were injured. According to The New York Times, prosecutors arrested and charged club owner Antonio Espaillat on June 12 […]
Just days after as estimated five million people turned up at 2,100 “No Kings” protest across the U.S. to decry the current administration’s divisive policies, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus singer Ronnie Winter cordially invited Donald Trump supporters to stay away from his band’s shows.
“I actually follow what Jesus says. If you’re a Christian and you’re watching this and you voted for Donald Trump, shame on you. You are not allowed to come to my shows. I don’t want you there,” said the vocalist for the Florida-bred hardcore band in an Instagram video. “Don’t come to my shows. It’s awesome that you love ‘Face Down.’ It’s not for you. It’s not your song. It is not your song.”
While it was unclear what spurred the post, Winter — who has long criticized Trump and his supporters, especially after the singer was slammed for being “woke” for encouraging the band’s fans to get vaccinated and wear masks during the COVID-19 pandemic — was unequivocal in his message to MAGA fans.
“I thought I was pretty clear about all this stuff in 2020. As you notice on my Instagram, I did not remove any of that stuff from the Stay Woke campaign. I guess you guys are calling it from 2020,” he said in the video. “Look, man, the thing about being woke is you’re awake. And once you’re awake, you can never go to sleep. And not only has nothing changed, but everything they said was going to happen, the woke people has happened. You have done nothing but prove them right.”
And, in case his message titled “If you call yourself a Christian please watch” gets interpreted incorrectly, Winter offered refunds to MAGA followers who have purchased tickets to RJA shows, but noted that his stay-away request isn’t valid for just the next three-plus years of Trump’s second term.
“If you voted for Donald Trump, do not come to my shows or ever, not just these four years. Don’t come to my shows because you’re going to hear a lot of woke propaganda, and you’re going to hear the actual words of Jesus,” he said. “You’re going to see a lot of acceptance from all areas of life and races, and you’re just going to see a lot of harmony. That’s not what you’re about. Don’t come. Refunds are available. Forever, don’t come. Goodbye.”
Check out Winter’s video below.
Johnny Marr is standing behind Kneecap, even as some are calling for the Irish band to be censored at Glastonbury in light of their past politically charged concerts and recent legal trouble. In a statement posted to Instagram on Monday (June 16), the former Smiths guitarist wrote that he feels it’s important to make his […]
OneRepublic singer and producer Ryan Tedder was not among the celebrities who joined in the protests against the Trump administration at the thousands of “No Kings” protests across the U.S. on Saturday. In fact, the songwriter who has worked with Beyoncé and Taylor Swift took to Instagram to protest against the protests, lamenting that they […]
Billie Joe Armstrong has never held back on his contempt for Donald Trump. The Green Day singer has been raging against the policies of the 45th and now 47th president for years, and during the band’s first-ever set at the Download Festival in Donington Park in the U.K. on Friday (June 13), the singer lashed out at the U.S. president in unequivocal terms.
“Donald Trump in his administration is a fascist government,” Armstrong told the crowd. “And it’s up to us to fight back.” The comments came just a day before Trump presided over his long-awaited military parade in Washington, D.C. The rare display of military hardware and marching soldiers was meant to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army, whilst also coinciding with Trump’s 79th birthday.
Though the D.C. event did not appear to draw the massive crowds the administration had predicted, a record number of Americans did turn out in historic numbers to protest the Trump White House’s agenda at more than 2,100 “No Kings” rallies, which drew an estimated five million attendees. The rallies featured a profusion of colorful, often profane signs lambasting Trump for what critics argued are imperial tactics to seize as many levers of government power as possible while attempting to drastically cut crucial social services, gutting environmental regulations and using the power of the White House to attack, and punish, perceived enemies.
In addition, Armstrong got the Download crowd to join him in calling Trump a “fat bastard,” in the singer’s latest broadside against the current administration. Back in March, less than 24 hours after Trump and Vice President JD Vance attacked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during an Oval Office meeting in which the veep accused the wartime leader of being insufficiently grateful for U.S. aid for its three-year battle against Russia.
“Am I retarded or am I just JD Vance,” Armstrong sang in a lyrical tweak to the lyrics to “Jesus of Suburbia,” amending the politically incorrect-on-purpose original, “Am I retarded or am I just overjoyed?”
Last weekend, Armstrong sent a message of solidarity to protesters in Los Angeles who took to the streets to rally against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in the city, as well as the president’s decision to deploy the National Guard to L.A. over the mayor, and Gov. Gavin Newson’s, objections.
On June 8, Armstrong posted a video of protests from downtown L.A. on his Instagram Stories, captioned it with a middle-finger emoji and an ice cube, cued to a live version of “F— Off,” a song on the group’s Saviors (Édition de Luxe), the 2025 deluxe version of Green Day’s 2024 album.
Heart‘s Nancy Wilson and her bandmate and sister Ann Wilson are proud daughters of a Marine Corps major, but the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame guitarist said in a pointed Instagram post on Saturday (June 14) that their band’s music is not meant for political purposes. “Earlier today, during a parade held in support of our nation’s military and organized by President Donald Trump, the song ‘Barracuda’ by Heart was played without permission or authorization from us,” she said of the playing of the group’s Billboard Hot 100 No. 11 1977 hit during the military showcase.
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“‘Barracuda,’ written and performed by Ann and I, is a powerful piece of music that was never intended for political use,” continued Wilson, who drove home her point by wearing a “No Kings But Us” hat on a day when a historic number of Americans took to the streets from coast to coast to protest against what they called the creeping authoritarianism of the second Trump administration in a series of “No Kings” protests.
“As daughters of a U.S. Marine Corps major, we hold a deep and abiding respect for the men and women who serve in our Armed Forces,” wrote Wilson. “On a day meant to honor that service, it’s important that music used in such settings reflects not only the tone of the event but also the wishes of the artists who created it.🤘🏻”
According to reports. instrumental versions of Heart’s “Barracuda” and Journey’s “Separate Ways (World’s Apart)” were among the songs played at the event that appeared to draw modest crowds at a reported price of $25-$45 million, while the ACLU said that an estimated five million people took part in more than 2,100 “No Kings” rallies across the nation, making it the largest protest in the nation’s history.
Trump’s military parade, which was intended to celebrate the U.S. Army’s 250th birthday, also fell on the president’s 79th birthday. The parading of military hardware through the streets of the nation’s capital is an unusual site in the U.S., though Trump has long mused out loud about wanting to hold such an event. The D.C. event came amidst a day of dramatic news, including Iran and Israel battering each other with missiles in what is ramping up to be a major escalation of hostilities between the two nations. In addition, officials in Minnesota launched a massive manhunt for the suspected shooter who assassinated a Democratic state legislator in that state and attempted assassination of another; the now-captured 57-year-old man, Vance Boelter, allegedly had a list of 70 other potential targets in his car.
Nancy Wilson has long objected to politicians using her band’s music at their rallies, and earlier this year she said she feels “embarrassed” to call herself an American at this time. “We were kind of embarrassed at that time to call ourselves American because of the dirty politics of the Vietnam War,” Wilson said of the period that inspired some of the band’s most beloved hits, including the anti-Vietnam war single “Crazy On You,” whose lyrics she added are relevant again. “To be as subtle as possible, it’s more embarrassing now.”
She noted that “Barracuda” was initially written about a sleazy industry figure at the time, though Wilson twisted it to fit the current commander in chief, saying the song is “even more relevant in the salacious billionaire culture with the grab-them-by-the-(expletive) mentality,” the latter phrase a reference to an infamous sexist comment from Trump.
The Wilsons were also peeved when Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin played “Barracuda” at the 2008 Republican National Convention, sending a cease and desist order to the former Alaska governor demanding she stop using the track as her unofficial theme song. In 2018, singer Ann Wilson told The Hill that any politician was free to use “Barracuda” on the campaign trail in 2020. “I think anybody but Trump,” she added.
NEEDTOBREATHE‘s Bear Rinehart is speaking out following allegations of childhood abuse made by his brother Bo Rinehart.
On Thursday (June 12), 43-year-old Bo, the former guitarist for NEEDTOBREATHE, shared a statement on social media alleging that he was sexually abused by multiple people during his childhood, including his older brother Bear, 44, the rock band’s lead singer.
“This is Bo. I am an alcoholic. I am a sinner, but I am a believer. I believe in God’s grace, and I believe that his mercy has shown that he is consistent, even though we don’t deserve it,” Bo wrote on Instagram. “I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. I’ve been sexually abused by a Camp counselor. I’ve been sexually, physically and emotionally abused by my brother. And I’ve been abused by my youth pastor.”
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He continued, “I believe that God has bigger plans for me and part of those plans are telling my story because it’s so hard for anyone to tell stories like these. Even when my faith has been crushed, I know that God still has provisions for me. If you’re out there and you’re thinking, nothing can be done, no one can help, there’s no way out… I’m with you… but I believe in a God who always finds a way. Don’t give up and don’t lose hope.”
Bo, who left NEEDTOBREATHE in 2020, later shared a photo of Bear with the caption “Sexual Abuser” in a since-deleted Instagram Story, according to Relevant Magazine.
On Saturday (June 14), Bear responded to his brother’s allegations with a lengthy post on the Instagram account for Wilder Woods, his solo musical project outside of NEEDTOBREATHE.
“I feel the need to comment on the deeply hurtful and misleading accusations that my brother Bo made the other night on social media,” Bear wrote. “I love Bo deeply and I always will. Since his departure from the band over five years ago, we have done everything in our power to treat him with respect and privacy. I would never choose to disparage him, especially at a time where he is clearly in pain. But as a father and husband, I must protect my family from claims that misrepresent the truth.”
He continued, “Until now, I had chosen to not share this publicly — not because I’m ashamed, but because I’ve wanted to protect my family. I have three young boys, and I wanted them to hear about my story from me directly, when the time is right and not through social media or online speculation. Bo’s post has now made it impossible for me to remain private about this period of our childhood any longer. I can only hope that God has a plan for this down the road. I have always respected Bo’s right to speak about his own story, but I cannot allow him to misrepresent mine.”
Bear went on to claim that “my brother and I were both sexually abused at the age of 8 and 6 by a teenage counselor” at a Christian camp where they grew up in South Carolina. “Neither of us received support for these events until well into adulthood and were both left to navigate the rest of childhood and adolescence with deep pain and confusion,” the musician wrote, adding that he later “found freedom” after counseling and support from loved ones.
“Bo’s recent accusation of me conflates our shared experience of abuse with a childhood incident he misrepresents,” Bear continued. “While going through a two day intensive counseling session with Bo five years ago, I learned that he was hurt by things that happened in our early teen years as well. At that counseling session I took full responsibility for any part I played in that pain. We processed those moments of shared trauma in detail and left with an understanding that we were two young boys trying to cope with the unimaginable. To now label me an abuser in such a heartless way is not only deeply painful, but is also wildly misleading and feels intentionally harmful.”
Bear concluded his message by expressing hope that he and Bo can reconcile someday. “I truly do pray for this healing,” he wrote. “I believe that all of us are broke and in need of a savior. My brother and I are no different.”
Billboard has reached out to NEEDTOBREATHE’s representatives for further comment.
In a 2023 interview with People, Bo opened up about coming to terms with his experience of sexual abuse as an adult, revealing that it was perpetrated by three different individuals. He did not provide further details.
“It takes time,” Bo said at the time. “At some point in our lives, we get to this stage — and it’s generally with survivors of childhood sexual abuse, it’s in their late 30s or early 40s — where it starts to surface whether you want it to or not. You’ll start to see how your life’s kind of breaking down.”
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
Kim Gordon unveiled a new version of her 2024 single”Bye Bye” on Friday (June 13) aimed squarely at the right-wing culture wars created by President Donald Trump.
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Rechristened “Bye Bye 25!,” the protest song now features the Sonic Youth alum listing off a litany of cultural terms the Trump administration has not only gotten worked up over, but attempted to erase from official government records altogether since returning to office in January.
“Mental health, electric vehicle, Gulf of Mexico/ Energy conversion, gay, bird flu, advocate, pregnant person,” Gordon intones over skittering, apocalyptic production, before later adding words like “immigrants,” “diversity,” “victims,” “transgender,” “Hispanic,” “fluoride” and “female” to the stanzas.
“When I was thinking of lyric ideas, it occurred to me to use words taken from a site that had all the words that Trump has essentially banned, meaning any grant or piece of a project or proposal for research that includes any of those words would be immediately disregarded or ‘cancelled,’” the singer explained of the song’s reinvention in a statement. “I guess Trump does believe in cancel culture, because he is literally trying to cancel culture.”
To coincide with the release, Gordon has also designed a limited-edition T-shirt, with proceeds from both the tee and the song going to benefit Noise for Now, a New Mexico-based nonprofit organization dedicated to abortion access and reproductive rights justice.
The alt-rocker released the original iteration of “Bye Bye” as the lead single from her sophomore solo album, The Collective, which bowed at No. No 40 on Billboard‘s Top Album Sales chart and peaked in the top 20 of the Indie Store Album Sales tally back when it was released in March 2024.
Watch the stark music video for Gordon’s “Bye Bye 25!” below.
Smokey Robinson claims in a new court filing that the former housekeepers suing him for rape are trying to slow-walk the lawsuit to gain maximum leverage for an extortionate settlement payout, including by dealing a financial blow to the Motown legend’s ongoing tour.
Lawyers for the 85-year-old singer made this argument in a Thursday (June 12) motion to require the deposition of one of the four anonymous former housekeepers who allege he forced them to have sex at his Los Angeles-area home dozens of times over nearly two decades. Robinson adamantly denies the claims and has countersued the women for extortion, defamation and elder abuse.
Robinson’s attorney, Christopher Frost, says in the new court filing that the housekeepers are refusing to participate in evidence collection. He claims that the women’s lawyer, John Harris, allegedly informed him that he wants to delay all discovery until they’ve litigated a motion to strike Robinson’s counterclaims, a lengthy process that could take months.
Frost claims the housekeepers, who he says demanded $100 million from Robinson and his wife Frances before suing them both in May, are doing so as a tactic to maximize settlement leverage. According to the motion, this strategy is aimed at cutting into profits from Robinson’s ongoing international tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of his album A Quiet Storm.
“Plaintiffs have effectively conceded that their intention was to file a salacious lawsuit, do nothing to prosecute it, neuter the Robinsons’ ability to defend themselves, and let the lawsuit linger publicly while the Robinsons have to live every day under the unfair specter of public opinion and while Mr. Robinson’s tour is negatively affected,” Frost writes.
“This plays into plaintiffs and cross-defendants’ strategy to exact leverage on Mr. and Ms. Robinson,” Frost adds. “The longer Mr. Robinson’s livelihood is harmed, the more pressure there is for the Robinsons to give in to plaintiffs’ and cross-defendants’ extortionate demands.”
Frost is asking for a court order requiring one of the four housekeepers, identified in court filings as “Jane Doe 2,” to sit for a deposition at his Los Angeles law office within two weeks of the motion being heard. Frost says the women should also foot the bill for nearly $5,000 in legal fees the Robinsons have run up bringing this motion.
“If plaintiffs and cross-defendants are not sanctioned for their abusive behavior, they will expect that they can continue this behavior during the pendency of this case, which will only create more delays and more motion practice,” writes Frost. “The utilization of this strategy must be nipped in the bud.”
The housekeepers’ lawyers did not immediately return a request for comment on the motion on Friday (June 13).
In addition to the civil lawsuit, the former Robinson housekeepers have also filed a police report against the singer. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is now investigating the women’s sexual assault claims.
Following the recent sexual assault accusations against Contemporary Christian Music star Michael Tait, Hayley Williams is speaking out against the genre as a whole for allegedly enabling his behavior for years.
Sharing a screenshot of The Guardian‘s Friday (June 13) investigation into the former Newsboys member’s actions, the Paramore frontwoman wrote in a statement on her Instagram Story, “The amount of things i have to say and the amount of people i know who were likely changed forever by this man and by the industry that empowered/enabled him …”
“I grew up around this,” Williams continued. “I am not afraid of any of these people — most of them have written me off anyway by now. How many stories like this from this VERY small corner of the music industry will we hear before we realize that [capitalizing] on people’s faith and vulnerability is the ‘sin?’”
The pop-rock singer’s post comes about a week after Christian news site The Roys Report published findings from a two-and-a-half-year investigation into Tait, with three men claiming that he groomed and sexually assaulted them between 2004 and 2014. Sources also detailed how Tait had allegedly long abused drugs and alcohol, despite years of encouraging sobriety and abstinence in his music.
Days later, Tait said he was “ashamed” and confirmed that there was truth to the allegations, writing in a response, “For some two decades, I used and abused cocaine, consumed far too much alcohol and, at times, touched men in an unwanted sensual way … I will simply call it what God calls it — sin.”
But on Friday, The Guardian‘s piece — in addition to sharing more details about how Tait allegedly secretly drugged and molested a minor — expanded upon how the CCM industry at large allowed for his behavior to go unchecked, the same thing Williams emphasized in her post.
“This is a man who’s entire faith identity is built upon a faulty structure of self-hatred, to please a system that would rather cover up abhorrent behavior for 20+ years (and make money off of it) rather than accept that being gay is not the problem,” she wrote in her statement. “I hope the ccm industry crumbles.
“And f— all of you who knew and didn’t do a damn thing,” Williams added. “I bet I’ve got your number. and btw if you’re not angry too then maybe its time to question why.”
Tait got his start as part of the group DC Talk, which found groundbreaking success on the charts in the ’90s. He joined Newsboys in 2009, remaining there up until he abruptly stepped down from the band in January.
At the time, remaining bandmates Duncan Phillips, Jeff Frankenstein, Jody Davis and Adam Agee wrote in a joint statement that they were “grateful for the extended season Michael has had with Newsboys” — but following the publication of The Roys Report‘s piece, the four musicians wrote on Instagram, “We are horrified, heartbroken and angry at this report and in many ways, we feel as if we and our families have been deceived for the past fifteen years.”
In his statement, Tait admitted that he’d “deceived my family, friends, fans and even misled my bandmates about aspects of my life” for years before seeking treatment at a center in Utah.
“I was, for the most part, living two distinctly different lives,” he added earlier this week. “I was not the same person onstage Sunday night that I was at home on Monday … By His grace I can say that for the past six months, I have lived a singular life, one of utter brokenness and total dependence on a loving and merciful God.”
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
