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Sam Heughan knows all about grand gestures. The star of the time-traveling romantic saga Outlander posted a video on Wednesday (June 5) in which he revealed that he and much of the costume drama show’s cast are planning to attend Taylor Swift‘s shows this weekend at the Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, Scotland. “We’re […]
Normani is happier than ever now that she’s less than two weeks away from dropping her long-awaited debut album, but back in her Fifth Harmony days, she definitely wasn’t getting as much dopamine.
In an interview with Rolling Stone published Wednesday (June 5), the “Motivation” singer got candid about her bittersweet feelings toward her challenging girl group days. “I’m grateful for all of it, even the moments where I might’ve felt inadequate or less than,” she told the publication. “It definitely has a lot to do with why I am the way that I am.”
“It definitely took a toll on my confidence,” she continued. “Would I do some things differently or wish that some things were done differently? Of course, but I also don’t want to sit here and make it sound like it wasn’t part of my story.”
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Normani first found fame after her X Factor audition led to her being placed in 5H with Ally Brooke, Dinah Jane, Lauren Jauregui and Camila Cabello. There were often reports of inner-conflict, and the Georgia-born, Houston-raised singer has been open in the past about the racism she experienced when so-called fans pitted her against her bandmates.
“We were babies,” she says now of her former groupmates. “We were so innocent and I think that is the struggle, to your point, of just us having to face reality under very unrealistic circumstances. I always say we did the very best we could with what we had, so that I’m proud of.”
“There’s so much that I don’t even remember because I suppressed it,” Normani added. “That’s just my way of protecting myself from having to deal with everything. But what I do remember is it wasn’t all bad. Like yeah, we struggled, but it was also really beautiful in what we accomplished together.”
After many years of delay, Normani’s first solo album Dopamine is set to drop June 14. In the interview, she revealed that the record was partly inspired by Brandy — whose vocals are featured on the LP — as well as Janet Jackson. “They’re literally the reason why I do what I do and why I’m able to be in the position that I am in: Black women,” she told the publication. “They redefined the standard of beauty, but also just the standard in music.”
“I’m f—ing strong despite everything that I’ve endured,” she added. “[Dopamine‘s] a testament to my strength and my resilience and my discipline. I’m a lot more sure of myself, a lot more comfortable. I’ve done a really good job at navigating and getting back to who I am and recognizing the beauty. I’m trusting myself a lot more.”
Billie Eilish has more Hit Me Hard and Soft tricks up her sleeve, and the superstar teased a music video for the album’s fan favorite track “Chihiro” on Wednesday (June 5). Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In the clip, Eilish is seen running down a hallway. […]
Sabrina Carpenter is continuing the rollout of her upcoming album, Short n’ Sweet, with a brand new single. The pop star took to social media on Wednesday (June 5) to announce that her track, “Please Please Please,” will be arriving on Thursday (June 6) at 8 p.m. ET. The song will be arriving alongside a […]
It’s safe to say that former Fox News host Megyn Kelly is not a KatyCat. In fact, the conservative podcaster said on an episode of her eponymous podcast this week that she finds Katy Perry‘s music “annoying” before flat-out saying she doesn’t like the pop superstar and claiming she “barely” knows who she is.
The comments came after Perry posted her own edit of Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker’s controversial May 11 commencement speech at Benedictine College in which the Super Bowl champ attacked LGBTQ rights and slammed what he termed “dangerous gender ideologies.” The 20-minute speech that also included broadsides against abortion, birth control and surrogacy, included Butker suggesting to female students at the private Catholic university in Illinois that they embrace being a “homemaker.”
Perry wasn’t having it and posted her own version on Sunday, writing, “fixed this for my girls, my graduates, and my gays — you can do anything, congratulations and happy pride,” alongside a second draft of the speech that had a much different, more inclusive tone.
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On Tuesday’s episode of her show, Kelly defended Butker’s speech, calling it an “antidote to the general message about stay-at-moms” while denying that the kicker was “condemning working women.”
“Katy Perry is annoying,” Kelly said before cueing up Perry’s edit and loudly huffing over the tape as it played. “She decided to take those comments and switch them around so that he was saying something he never actually said and have him say ‘happy pride.’” Co-host Dave Rubin called the edit “pathetic” and noted that Kelly is an “extremely” successful broadcaster and mother before asking her which title was more important, to which Kelly answered, “there’s no question.”
“But Katy Perry saw her ‘Roar’ moment — which is an annoying song, that’s an annoying song. I don’t like her, I actually don’t think she is a good singer,” Kelly said while mockingly singing Perry’s 2008 breakthrough hit “I Kissed a Girl.” Rubin, meanwhile, claimed he could not even name a single song from the singer who is one of only five artists in history to sell more than 100 million certified units with her digital singles worldwide and who co-hosted American Idol for seven years.
“I barely know who you are,” Kelly added while erroneously saying the singer is married to actor Orlando Bloom ; Perry is engaged to the star, but they are not married though they share a three-year-old daughter, Daisy Dove Bloom. “To manipulate the guy’s remarks is dishonest and petty,” Kelly said before dinging Perry again for closing comments on the post after receiving backlash. “She can’t take it!,” Kelly said as Rubin dubbed the singer’s edit a “leftist 101” move.
At press time a spokesperson for Perry had not returned a request for comment.
Listen to Kelly’s comments on Perry here (beginning at the 1:05:55 mark).
Taylor Swift isn’t letting baseless pregnancy rumors make Lady Gaga feel down bad any longer. Shortly after the latter pop star shut down speculation about her body by using a song from the former’s The Tortured Poets Department, the “Anti-Hero” singer swooped in to defend her peer from “invasive and irresponsible” gossip. “Can we all […]
Three years after acquiring Janet Jackson‘s actual costume from the 1993 “If” music video, Kim Kardashian finally had somewhere to wear it to. On Tuesday (June 4), the reality star modeled the exact ribbed top and black pants worn by the “Together Again” singer in her 1993 visual to Jackson’s concert in Palm Springs, which […]
Cyndi Lauper got a little help from her friends on Tuesday (June 4) during the “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” singer’s TCL Chinese Theatre hand and footprint ceremony in Los Angeles. In an Instagram Story, Lauper, 70, looked glam in an all-black outfit and a shock of white hair accented by oversized white earrings as she was flanked by pals Cher and Bebe Rexha.
The story also featured Lauper revisiting the corner of Gay St. in New York where she shot the “Girls” video for a CBS Sunday Morning segment, a pic of the three women at the ceremony and a series of snaps and videos of Lauper imprinting her hands in cement.
In a clip from the Mann’s visit, Rexha said of Lauper, “Not only was I drawn to her infectious melodies and her edgy style, but it was most importantly her unapologetic nature to be her true self. Her true, authentic self.”
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Cher recalled singing her song “If I Could Turn Back Time” with Lauper at a VH1 Divas show in 2002, saying, “I was feeling good about myself and she comes out and blows me away. And we’ve been friends ever since.” The story ended with images of Lauper on the red carpet at the L.A. VIP screening of her biopic, Let the Canary Sing, where, of course, she was fitted in an all-yellow Versace suit.
The feature-length film that debuted at last year’s Tribeca Festival in New York was directed by Emmy-winning documentarian Alison Ellwood (Laurel Canyon) and debuted on Paramount+ on Tuesday night. “Over the years I’ve been asked to do a documentary about my life and work, but it never felt like the right time,” Lauper, 70, said in a statement about the film. “Until now. When I first met Alison Ellwood, I knew right away I could trust her to tell my story honestly, which was incredibly important to me, and she succeeded in that. I’d like to thank Alison, the producers, and all of the amazing documentary participants who agreed to be interviewed!”
Earlier this week, Lauper announced her 23-city Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour. The singer’s first major run of shows in more than a decade is scheduled to kick off on Oct. 18 at the Bell Centre in Montreal and run through a Dec. 5 gig at the United Center in Chicago.
Watch some other footage from the handprint ceremony and movie screening below.
https://www.tiktok.com/@hollywoodstartours/video/7376725574858935595
RM achieves his first No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Rap Albums chart as Right Place, Wrong Person starts in the summit of the list dated June 8. The project, released May 24, earned 54,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week week ending May 30, according to Luminate.
For Right Place, Wrong Person’s debut-week total, traditional album sales contribute 43,000 units, while streaming activity (SEA) provides 7,500 units, a figure that equals 10.16 million official on-demand streams of the album’s songs. Track-equivalent album (TEA) units comprise the remaining 3,500 balance.
Elsewhere, Right Place, Wrong Person opens at No. 5 on the all-genre Billboard 200, where it becomes RM’s third solo entry on the chart. His Mono. mixtape peaked at No. 26 in 2018, while Indigo reached a No. 3 best in 2022. BTS, of which RM is a member, has collected 15 charting titles on the Billboard 200, including six No. 1s.
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Thanks to Right Place, Wrong Person’s strong individual track sales – the album has the most TEA units of any title on this week’s Top Rap Albums chart – six of the project’s cuts arrive on the Rap Digital Song Sales chart. Here’s a recap:
No. 2 – “Nuts” (4,000 sold)No. 3 – “Right People, Wrong Place” (3,000)No. 4 – “Groin” (3,000)No. 5 – “Domodachi,” with Little Simz (3,000)No. 6 – “Out of Love” (3,000)No. 7 – “? (Interlude),” with DOMi & JD Beck (3,000)
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Activity surrounding Right Place, Wrong Person drives RM 55-4 to a new career high on the Billboard Artist 100, which measures artist activity across key metrics of music consumption – album and track sales, radio airplay and streaming – to provide a weekly multi-dimensional ranking of the most popular artists. As RM rockets into the top five, he outdoes his prior best showing of No. 6 from December 2022, concurrent with Indigo’s peak on the Billboard 200.
Taylor Swift is the absolute best when it comes to playing the long game. For the latest proof just look to one of the fan favorites from her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department‘s “But Daddy I Love Him.” Initially it was assumed that the title was a winking nod to a phrase uttered by […]