Pop

11 Apr 2024

Of Course Prince Gave Animal Lover Nicole Richie Her First Dog… And of Course He Was Named ‘God’

You get to experience a lot of cool stuff when your dad is one of the biggest pop stars in the world. But Nicole Richie proved on Tuesday night (April 9) that the stars are not always just like us after all. Not even close.

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Chatting with Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight Show in an appearance to promote her starring role in the remake of the 1991 comedy Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead, avowed animal lover Richie ran down the list of her current and former favorite pets, including her new cat Lavender Bumblebee. The feline, of course, joins Nicole’s other favorite kitty, Tiger Lily Sprinkle Winks, who, she noted was initially “very upset” when LB came into the picture.

Richie also recalled her many trips to a pet store in L.A. with childhood bestie and reality TV co-star Paris Hilton to buy pet rats. “I don’t know why, I actually hate rats now,” she said of her expansive rat pack, all of whom were named after Beverly Hills 90210 characters. “So I don’t know why we were into them, but we were.” After rogue rat Tori Spelling ended up on her mom’s face one morning, the rats were out and Nicole moved on to her next obsession: Las Vegas-sourced ferrets.

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That was far from the wildest animal tale she told, though.

“Yes, Prince got me my first dog,” Richie told Fallon about the pooch the enigmatic late pop icon gave her when she was four. “I remember because the dog’s name was God. I did not name the dog, obviously.”

Richie said she was used to interactions with superstars on a regular basis from attending her dad Lionel Richie’s concerts as a kid, though she typically kept to the backstage area. “The first time that I went in the audience — I remember this so clearly — one of the Pointer Sisters was there,” Richie said, adding that the singer in question had a cute Yorkie with a pink bow in its hair at the gig. “She’s the one who brought me out into the audience for the first time.” Fallon then shared a recent video of Nicole and sister Sofia in the crowd at one of their dad’s shows losing their minds along with everyone else in the crowd.

Richie stars alongside June Squibb, Jermaine Fowler and Gus Kenworthy in the Babysitter reboot due out on Friday (April 12).

Watch Richie on The Tonight Show below.

11 Apr 2024

Ariana Grande Gets Cozy With Cynthia Erivo, Ethan Slater & More ‘Wicked’ Castmates at CinemaCon

Goodness knows, Ariana Grande has a lot of love for her Wicked castmates. The 30-year-old pop star joined Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum and Michell Yeoh in promoting the upcoming film duology at CinemaCon Wednesday (April 10) in Las Vegas, during which she posed for a set of sweet photos with the group backstage and walking around the event hand-in-hand with Ethan Slater. 

Wearing a swankified dress modeled after a delicate pink flower, Grande took the stage alongside Erivo to speak about the film for the convention’s Universal Pictures and Focus Features Presentation at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The “Yes, And?” singer plays Glinda and Erivo is Elphaba in Jon M. Chu’s two-part live-action adaptations of the Stephen Schwartz musical, which itself was based on Gregory Maguire’s bestselling novel. The first film premieres this Thanksgiving. 

Offstage, the R.E.M. Beauty founder and Erivo posed for a sweet mirror selfie at the makeup station with Goldblum, who portrays the Wizard of Oz in the films; Yeoh, aka Madame Morrible; Bailey, who plays Fiyero; and Slater, who appears as the munchkin Boq. Later, the Jurassic Park actor posted the snap, as well as another photo with Grande, on Instagram. 

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“Over the rainbow to be reunited with this magical family!” he captioned the post, under which the two-time Grammy winner commented, “my heart !!!!!!!!!” 

In a video taken at the convention, Grande and Slater — who started dating while shooting Wicked in the U.K. last year — walked through the venue together while holding hands, the SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical star matching his superstar girlfriend in a pink shirt. 

The film event comes just a few days after the “We Can’t Be Friends” artist supported Slater at his finale show for Spamalot on Broadway, after which fan videos captured the couple holding hands on their way out of St. James Theatre in New York City. Grande later wrote on Instagram Stories, “Congratulations to the most beautiful and talented and kindest cast and crew on a magnificent run.” 

See photos and video of Grande with her Wicked castmates below. 

11 Apr 2024

No, JoJo Siwa Does Not Think She Invented ‘Gay Pop’ — But She Would Like to Be the ‘CMO’

JoJo Siwa would like to set the record — for lack of a better word — straight. After a clip from her recent Billboard interview went viral, the “Karma” singer is making it clear that she did not invent the idea of “gay pop.”

In a video published by TMZ, Siwa took a moment to clarify her statement about the genre of gay pop music, saying, “I think I just want to make it more clear that gay pop is a genre,” she said. “I am not the inventor of gay pop, for sure not. But I do want to be a piece of making it bigger than it already is. I Want to bring more attention to it.”

She continued, using a corporate metaphor to further illustrate her point. “I’m not the president [of gay pop], but I might be the CEO, or the CMO. I can be the CMO, the chief marketing officer, and use my marketing tactics whether people like it or not,” she said.

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In her original interview with Billboard News’ Tetris Kelly, Siwa said that when she originally signed to Columbia Records, she told the label, “I want to start a new genre of music … it’s called ‘gay pop,’” before going on to compare the genre to the jazz-funk genre of dance. The online community quickly began criticizing Siwa for saying she wanted to “create” this “new genre,” with queer icons Tegan and Sara literally offering the 20-year-old singer some side eye on their TikTok page.

Siwa said that Tegan and Sara were far from the only LGBTQ+ musicians to throw some light shade at her comments. “Even Betty Who made a post being like, ‘Hey…’” she said. “And I’m literally friends with Betty.”

All the controversy comes on the heels of Siwa’s new single, “Karma,” which saw the singer taking on a new, more unvarnished pop star persona. You can watch the video for Siwa’s new song below:

11 Apr 2024

Mariah Carey Adds Dates to Her ‘Celebration of Mimi Live in Las Vegas’ Residency Run

A day before launching her upcoming Mariah Carey: The Celebration of Mimi Live in Las Vegas residency at the Dolby Live at Park MGM on Friday night (April 12) the singer has announced a new slate of dates for her stay-put.

On Thursday morning (April 11), Carey revealed eight additional shows on the run celebrating the 19th anniversary of her Grammy-winning 10th studio album, 2005’s Billboard 200 No. 1 The Emancipation of Mimi, which featured such beloved hits as “It’s Like That,” “We Belong Together”and “Shake It Off.”

The new dates will kick off on July 26 and include additional dates that month on the 27th and 31st, as well as shows on August 2, 3, 7, 9 and 10; tickets for the newly announced gigs will go on sale to the general public on April 19 at 10 a.m. PT. Citi cardmembers will have access to a presale beginning on Friday (April 12) at 10 a.m. PT through April 18 at 10 p.m. PT here.

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According to a release announcing the new shows, Carey’s third go-round in Vegas will find her performing fan favorites from the Mimi album in addition to some of her iconic hits and other fan favorites from throughout her career. The previously announced dates include shows on April 12, 13, 17, 19, 20, 24, 26 and 27. Tickets for the shows can be purchased here, with a limited number available for the initial run.

The Mimi run, backed by Live Nation and MGM Resorts, is the follow-up to Carey’s first two residencies at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, #1 to Infinity (2015-2017) and The Butterfly Returns (2018-2020). Infinity was a chronological performance of the singer’s 18 No. 1 hits, starting with 1990’s “Vision of Love” through 2008’s “Touch My Body.” While that show focused on Carey the entertainer, “Butterfly” leaned into her formidable vocal chops with a powerhouse 23-song set list of big hits, surprises and her personal favorites.

Carey and Live Nation are donating $1 from every ticket to the Fresh Air Fund’s Camp Mariah, a summer program that allows campers to explore their interest in film, photography, fashion, cooking, debate and international relations.

See the new date announcement below.

Mariah Carey: The Celebration of Mimi Live in Las Vegas

Courtesy Photo

11 Apr 2024

Watch Miley Cyrus Hilariously Introduce Joaquin Phoenix to His Future ‘Joker 2’ Co-Star Lady Gaga Way Back in 2010

If you saw the just-released first trailer forJoker: Folie à Deux, you already know that the titular Batman baddie terrifyingly embodied by Joaquin Phoenix has truly found his black heart’s true love in his infamous henchwoman Harley Quinn, played this time around by Lady Gaga.

And while Phoenix took home the best actor award at the 2020 Oscars for his first go-round in the smeared red lipstick, a newly resurfaced clip from 2010 proves that there was a time when Joaquin had no idea who Mother Monster was.

The chat between Miley Cyrus and Phoenix shared by the Miley fan account @MileyCyrusBz finds the Hannah Montana star giving her guest a grilling about the singer whose career was already in overdrive thanks to her 2008 breakthrough album, The Fame. After explaining to Phoenix that she’s a “singer-slash-actress” the then-18-year-old answered his question about what kind of dancing she does by saying it’s “like Lady Gaga.”

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“Oh Lady Gaga dance?” Phoenix responds quizically. “You know who Lady Gaga is?” Cyrus asks, sensing the answer already. “Very well,” Phoenix tells her, adding erroneously, “She has the song ‘Everybody Goes Up.’ She also does the one ‘Two Lashes at a Time.’”

“No,” Miley corrects her elder, busting into some hand dancing to “Bad Romance,” which Phoenix attempts to copy for a second before admitting “I don’t know that song.”

According to Uproxx, the clip is from the video “MILEY CYRUS TEACHES JOAQUIN PHOENIX & LIV TYLER How to Vote for TWLOHA and Suicide Prevention,” which was uploaded at the time to the YouTube account for the mental health non-profit To Write Love on Her Arms.

Phoenix, of course, is now well-acquainted with Gaga, who will join him on the big screen in the Joker sequel that opens on Oct. 4.

Check out the clip below.

11 Apr 2024

Peppa Pig Earns Her Stripes in Adorable New Cover of Katy Perry’s ‘Roar’: Watch

Peppa Pig may be a small pink barn animal, but she’s still the queen of the jungle.

Marking the cartoon protagonist’s first-ever cover song, Peppa will drop an adorable rendition of Katy Perry‘s “Roar” on Thursday evening (April 11) — because, as she puts it at the beginning of the song’s new lyric video shared exclusively with Billboard, “Even the littlest pig can have the loudest roar.”

The little British pig lets her small-but-mighty voice shine on her cover of “Roar,” which features short cameos from fellow Peppa Pig characters such as Zoë Zebra and Pedro Pony. In the lyric video, Peppa and her friends dress up as superheroes, face off with a fire-breathing dragon and swing from vine to vine in a rainforest inhabited by friendly monkeys.

“I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire/ ‘Cause I am a champion, and you’re gonna hear me roar,” she sings, adding at the end, “A little confidence goes a long way.”

Released in 2013 as a single from Prism, “Roar” spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 — a feat Perry has accomplished nine times in her career. Prior to Peppa’s cover, Perry and her fiancé, Orlando Bloom, lent their voices to the characters Ms. Leopard and Mr. Raccoon in the three-part Peppa Pig Wedding Special. Offscreen, Perry and the Pirates of the Caribbean star are parents to 3-year-old daughter Daisy.

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Although “Roar” marks the first cover song Peppa has released, the animated star has previously shared music of her own. She’s dropped several albums, including her aptly named 2019 debut My First Album and is known for singles such as “Peppa’s Lullaby” and “Bing Bong Zoo.”

Watch the lyric video for Peppa Pig’s cover of “Roar” above.

11 Apr 2024

Adam Levine Reacts to Mick Jagger Dancing to ‘Moves Like Jagger’: ‘It’s Really Surreal’

Sometimes life imitates art. Sometimes, Mick Jagger dances to your song about Mick Jagger dancing.

Adam Levine has had that most unusual experience. Last month, video surfaced of the legendary Rolling Stones frontman goofing it up in a bar, grooving along to Maroon 5’s 2011 hit “Moves Like Jagger.”

Jagger, now 80, but showing more moves and juice than most chaps half his age, shared the snippet on his Instagram account, captioned with the comment, “Moves like who!”.

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In the clip, which can be seen below, the British rock hero is clearly having a blast, cutting some of his iconic shapes as the band Splash performs a cover of the song.

When Levine stopped by NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Wednesday night (April 10), conversation casually moved to the Jagger video.

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“It’s really surreal,” he tells the late-night host. “It’s just one of those things you’re like, ‘oh my, like how is this possible. What is happening. It’s bizarre.’”

For such a surreal, bizarre, career highlight, few friends thought to share it with Levine. “My mom and like one of my friends sent me the video.” Yeah, he continues, “I was shocked not more people sent it to me.”

When the song originally took shape all those years ago, the mover at the heart of the story was a woman. Then, reckons Levine, he was “the only idiot crazy enough to say that I have the moves like Jagger.” Apparently, it’s a “confidence thing. It’s a swag thing,” says Levine. “He’s the man.”

During his late-night guest spot, Levine also hinted at new music, for which he and Maroon 5 will take an in-house approach, and he discussed the band’s residency in Las Vegas.

“It’s coming,” he says of new works. “For the first time in about 13 years, I’ve decided to take the reins back from the songwriting part of it.” He’s determined that “the ideas come either from myself or the band. So that we’re not going to have any real co-writes. The ideas are coming straight from the nucleus of Maroon 5,” which, he assures, will make the music “sound a like it did in the very beginning. I’m so excited about what’s happening right now.“

The pop group’s seventh and most recent studio album, 2021’s Jordi, peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard 200.

Following a run of 2023 shows, Maroon 5 are headed back to Las Vegas for a new slate of dates in their M5LV The Residency at the Dolby Live at Park MGM theater, a 5,200-capacity venue.

Playing to punters in Sin City, many of whom likely made a choice that night to see Maroon 5, rather than super-fans who saved all their dimes and marked their calendars, was a challenge accepted. “It’s a new type of crowd to conquer,” he admits. “That was a nice challenge” and, ultimately, the dates “injected new life into the way we perform.”

The singer also stuck around for a round of “Wheel of Music Impressions” with Fallon. Watch below.


https://youtube.com/watch?v=hG1Auy-S1Fw&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

10 Apr 2024

Chris Martin’s Son Is His Lookalike in 18th Birthday Photo

Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin’s son Moses turned 18 years old earlier this week (April 8), and the Shakespeare in Love actress took to Instagram to celebrate her child’s birthday.

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“Happy 18th birthday to you, my son,” she wrote alongside a photo of Moses, looking exactly like his father as he gives a soft smile to the camera. “I am so proud of who you are. I love your sensitivity and brilliance and quiet humor. I admire how deep you go into areas that interest you, becoming an expert in synths from the 80’s and the French new wave.”

Paltrow continued, “I love how much you love the people you love, but also how internal you are. There is such a magnificent world of ideas and harmonies inside that beautiful head of yours. I am unbelievably proud of the person you are today, as you cross over the threshold into adulthood. I love you more than words can say, @mosesmartin you absolutely kill me.”

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Paltrow and Martin married in December 2003 and remained together until 2014. The pair, who aside from Moses are also parents to 19-year-old daughter Apple, announced their separation in a joint statement about their mutual decision to “consciously uncouple.” 

In a November 2023 interview with People, Paltrow revealed that she and the Coldplay singer spoke with friends and family members that have been through divorce, and used those experiences — such as the parents not sitting with each other at graduations, or not coming inside to pick the kids up — to navigate their own separation.

“Those were the things that really hurt the kids,” Paltrow explained. “And so Chris and I just said, ‘Let’s just never do that and let’s try to get through the hard part of this and remember our friendship.’”

10 Apr 2024

Frankie Grande Thanks Ariana Grande for Supporting Him on ‘Sobriety Journey’: ‘Best Sister in the World’

Ariana Grande is a gifted vocalist, songwriter and actress, but before she was any of those things, she was a great sister. To prove it, Frankie Grande posted a sweet tribute to his superstar little sis in honor of National Siblings Day on Wednesday (April 10), thanking her for standing by him — especially in the past six years as he’s worked to maintain a sober lifestyle.

Sharing a selfie with Ari, who makes a kissy face in the photo as the Big Brother alum grins at the camera, Frankie wrote, “I want to take a moment to thank the BEST sister in the world for being there for me through thick and thin.”

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“From helping me with my sobriety journey to showing up for me at big moments in my life and career,” he continued. “You are the best sister anyone could ask for and I’m eternally proud of you and all the sunshine you continue to spread in this world.”

Grande, whose Billboard 200-topping album Eternal Sunshine arrived last month, commented on the post, “my sweetest! i love you so so much.”

The Summoning Sylvia actor has been open about his struggles with sobriety in the past, telling Today‘s Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager in January that the 2017 terrorist attack at his little sister’s Manchester concert — which killed 22 fans in attendance and injured many more — was the original catalyst for his decision to quit using substances. “It was a rock-bottom moment,” he said. “I realized that I could not show up to help my family.”

See Frankie’s post about Ariana below.

10 Apr 2024

Cailee Spaeny Recalls Fangirling With Taylor Swift About ‘Mare of Easttown’ & Kansas City Chiefs

Cailee Spaeny lived a dream scenario at the 2024 Golden Globes: meeting Taylor Swift and discovering that her love for the pop star was mutual.

Both the 25-year-old actress and Swift were nominated for awards at the January ceremony, with Spaeny in the running for best actress thanks to her titular performance in Priscilla and the 34-year-old “Anti-Hero” singer’s Eras Tour concert film earning recognition for cinematic and box office achievement. And though the prizes went to Killers of the Flower Moon‘s Lily Gladstone and Barbie, respectively, Spaeny could argue that meeting Swift was a win in itself.

“It was like I was looking at a real-life Disney princess,” she gushed of the 14-time Grammy winner in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published Wednesday (April 10). “I was so inarticulate. I was like, ‘Your hair is so pretty,’ and I said to myself, ‘Oh my God, really!? Is that the only thing you’re going to say?’”

“I also said, ‘I’m a [Kansas City] Chiefs fan and I love you,’ but I didn’t know what to say,” she continued. “And she was like, ‘Yeah, it’s all in one place now.’ And I was like, ‘Exactly!’ So I don’t have many fangirl moments, but that one was a big deal. Anyone my age would agree that you can’t keep your chill in that moment.”

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Spaeny, a Missouri native, made sure to specify that she’s been a fan of the Chiefs her whole life — and not just since Swift started dating tight end Travis Kelce in summer 2023. The Craft: Legacy actress also brought Bottoms‘ Ruby Cruz, her good friend and onetime co-star, as her plus-one to the Globes, and Swift had kind things to say to both of them about their performances in HBO’s Mare of Easttown.

“Taylor Swift brought up that she loved Mare of Easttown, which is so crazy, and Ruby went, ‘I’m in Mare of Easttown, too!’” Spaeny told the publication before marveling at Swift’s impeccable memory. “And then Taylor said, ‘But you were blonde in Mare of Easttown, weren’t you?’ So I don’t know what that says about Taylor. Maybe it’s just that she’s a massive Mare of Easttown fan, which is very cool.”

Both Spaeny and Swift are currently gearing up for the release of their latest projects, with the former’s Civil War, in which she stars alongside Kirsten Dunst, hitting theaters Friday (April 12). The latter’s new album The Tortured Poets Department arrives one week later, on April 19.