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What better way to celebrate the release of your love-drenched debut album as a couple than go on The Tonight Show to prove how good you are at lying to each other? Well, that’s exactly what Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco did on Thursday night (March 20) when they fêted their collab LP I Said I Love You First by playing a round of “True Confessions” with host Jimmy Fallon.
Spoiler alert: they are adorably bad at lying to one another.
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The couple had other business to discuss on the show, of course, including a re-telling of the tale of Blanco’s elaborate engagement plot, which Selena said she almost ruined because she was exhausted after a long day of work. Gomez, who wore a flattering, off-the-shoulder black velvet dress and heels, and Blanco, dressed in a bedazzled, ripped jeans and an equally sparkly pale purple short-sleeved shirt and black cowboy boots, said she had no idea that Blanco was going to propose back in December because the day it happened she was wiped from work.
“We had to do a lot of promo for the album, so I woke up and I was very confused on what was happening, where we were going, because it seemed kind of far,” Gomez said. “I’m kind of a little grumpy. I really am tired. This is too far. So then I tell him, ‘after this shoot I’m going to go hang out with my friends.’”
Blanco said that sent him into panic mode because getting engaged is the “craziest thing” in the world. “It’s like, right before you’re gonna tell someone you’re gonna be married to them forever, they’re like, ‘show me how good you can lie to me!’” Blanco joked. “It’s the hardest thing in the world!” Blanco said the cloak-and-dagger arrangement made for the “scariest week of my life.”
When Fallon predicted the music at the wedding would be “amazing,” Gomez said they are “definitely not planning exactly at this moment,” but that she will for sure leave the music portion of the big night to Grammy-nominated producer/songwriter Blanco.
The pair, of course, also talked about the album, which Gomez described as “an exploration of each other’s present, past and future. The music was very fun, but cathartic, because we got to know each other on a deeper level.”
Earlier in the episode during the lying game, Selena tried to convince Blanco and Fallon that one time her dog ran away on set and Paul Rudd found it. Blanco was immediately skeptical about the tale, asking what year it was, to which Gomez snapped, “what are you, Judge Judy?” Showing off his deep knowledge of Sel’s dog history, Blanco expertly poked holes in her story, leading the singer to complain, “He knows it’s a lie. I told you backstage I’m going to be terrible at this!”
Nobody fell for Fallon’s dumb claim that he almost ruined Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown’s last year by showing up uninvited, especially Blanco who asked, “Who is Millie Bobby Brown?” After proving his expert sleuthing skills, it was Blanco’s turn to lie, pretending he starred in a Burger King commercial as a kid. He put on a good face, but Gomez immediately wondered, “I dunno… why wouldn’t you have told me that?”
Watch Gomez and Blanco on The Tonight Show below.
Folk legend Joan Baez was having a ball sitting on the couch with an eclectic group of fellow guests on the season debut of John Mulaney’s new Netflix series Everybody’s Live With John Mulaney. But the “Joe Hill” singer whose songs of protest and social justice were a staple of the 1960s folk scene also had some serious things on her mind as well.
In a prelude to a story about “funny person” Martin Luther King Jr., Baez said she needed to “set the context” for what is going on in our country at the moment. “You said I could say anything I want out here,” Baez said to the host. “We’re all here to be silly and have fun, and as long as we recognize the fact that our democracy is going up in flames… we’re being run by a bunch of really incompetent billionaires.”
Baez did not specifically note who said billionaires are, but it appeared she was talking about Donald Trump and DOGE boss Elon Musk, who have been deeply slashing the federal government workforce over the past two months in their attempt to cut government spending in a manner that has raised alarms about the impact on the environment, American’s health and safety of the LGBTQ+ community.
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After Mulaney joked about the thought of Baez driving a Tesla, the singer noted that she actually used to own one of Musk’s all-electric cars after her assistant suggested she try one, but that she now has serious buyer’s remorse.
“I hated that thing,” Baez, 84, said. “But I thought I was supposed to like it. So I drove off in it. Within 45 minutes I had smashed it into an oak tree on my property… I was thinking, ‘That’s a sign.’” While Baez said the crash was not on purpose, the joke came amid a national, and international, backlash against Musk’s chainsaw-like slashing of federal programs that has seen Tesla vehicles and showrooms vandalized.
“I hated it,” Baez added of the car without specifying when she owned it. “It was too big… I sold it and got one-half the amount of money I paid for.”
Baez — who was portrayed by Monica Barbaro in the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown – appeared on the re-boot of the show alongside actor Michael Keaton, SNL alumni Fred Armisen and Tracy Morgan, popular personal finance columnist Jessica Roy and Christopher Lloyd, and, of course, Mulaney’s sidekick and announcer, comedian/actor Richard Kind.
She also talked about hanging out with civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s, saying she heard him tell “dirty jokes” when the cameras weren’t around. “I thought, ‘I am going to get the inside story on how these guys do these marches,’” Baez said, lamenting that instead “They all start telling dirty jokes… from the airport to his favorite little restaurant.” Asked if she remembered any of the bawdy jokes, Baez said, “I do, and I can’t tell them here.”
In addition, Baez proved her ageless nature by gamely dancing along to musical guests Cypress Hill as they performed their 1993 stone cold classic, “Hits From the Bong.”
Mulaney’s series began life as the Emmy-winning, six-episode Everybody’s in L.A. last May during the Netflix is a Joke festival, with a playful live format that focused on a series of very LA.-specific subjects, including coyotes, palm trees, helicopters and the paranormal. It will now air as a series of 12 live weekly shows.
Fresh off her appearance at Sunday’s Academy Awards as part of a James Bond theme song tribute, BLACKPINK’s LISA bonded with Jimmy Kimmel over their shared experience of being flown up into the rafters on wires at the Oscars. “It seemed so elegant and graceful, but it’s kind of scary right?” asked Kimmel on Tuesday night’s (March 4) Jimmy Kimmel Live!, recalling the agita (and discomfort) he felt while flying over the stage during one of his hosting stints on the awards show.
“It was really scary,” LISA smiled. “I was like, ‘I’m not comfortable doing this!” The singer said producers repeatedly checked in to make sure she felt good about being lowered to the stage in a harness as she sang Paul McCartney and Wings’ “Live and Let Die” as part of a medley that also had Doja Cat covering Shirley Bassey’s “Diamond Are Forever” and RAYE’s take on Adele’s “Skyfall.” While Kimmel complained about gravity “squeezing everything down” if you know what he means, LISA said she couldn’t really feel her legs.
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“Those were the least of my problems,” Kimmel joked.
The BLACKPINK singer also talked about her well-received turn as Mook on the current season of HBO’s The White Lotus, noting that many fans have speculated that because her resort worker character is so sweet on the series she might turn out to be the killer. “Oh… am I supposed to tell you that?” she responded haltingly, with a coquettish glint in her eye. “Legally you should not, but I would appreciate it if you did,” Kimmel said, knowing that his ploy to squeeze some spoilers about the tightly-held plot of the show was going nowhere.
“I think she’s a sweet girl,” LISA said of the character whose name means “pearl” in Thai before Kimmel explained the not-as-nice meaning of the word in America. Kimmel also wondered if during the cast’s regular karaoke sessions on set if the crew or extras freaked out when they saw the K-pop superstar stepping up to the mic. “They don’t care!,” LISA said. “I’m just sitting in the corner of the room cheering them, hyping them up,” she said, explaining that she didn’t sing during the sessions, but was more into dancing.
“I feel weird for me to grab the mic and sing karaoke,” she smiled. “[There’s] a lot of pressure.” As for who was the best karaoke singer in the cast, LISA said for sure it was the lone returning actor from season two: horny masseuse Natasha Rothwell. “Oh, she’s so good!” LISA said.
She also discussed the concept behind her just-released solo album, Alter Ego, explaining that while recording it in Los Angeles she tried her hand at recording songs in a variety of styles, all of which she ended up loving. “That’s why I called this album Alter Ego and [I] have five different characters [on it],” she said of Roxi, Kiki, Sunni, Speedi and the main character, Vixi.
These days, she said, Vixi is the one that is closest to her actual personality, though, like Speedi, she loves to drive fast in her car.
Watch LISA on Jimmy Kimmel Live! below.
After a five-year break, Adam Levine is back on The Voice and it feels good. The singer said he’s “ready” and “rested” after stepping away from the show for a bit, telling Jennifer Hudson on Tuesday’s (Feb. 25) Jennifer Hudson Show that getting a chance to take a break and hang with wife Behati Prinsloo and the couple’s three young children has been good for him.
“Stepping back into it when I was really ready and comfortable it kind of felt like natural timing for everything,” said Levine, 45, who logged 16 seasons on The Voice before splitting in 2019. Levine was there in the show’s debut season in 2011, slipping into the iconic red chair next to Christina Aguilera, CeeLo Green and his best frenemy, Blake Shelton.
Hudson, who overlapped with Levine during seasons 13 and 15, asked if Levine has changed his strategy at all on he show, noting that he was “not easy to deal with” when she was going up against him. “I’m a pain in the butt,” Levine admitted, revealing that there was no official strategy when the first crew started the reality series that his team won three times.
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“So you just think to yourself, ‘Okay, I’ll just see how this goes,’” he said. More importantly, Hudson noted that Levine is now sitting in Shelton’s old chair after the nine-time champ country singer departed his long-time gig in May 2023 after 12 years.
“Doesn’t smell great,” Levine laughed. “Smells kind of off… weathered. Worn in, the seat’s a little more sunken in cuz he’s big… he’s a tall drink of water that guy. Nah, I think they washed it. It feels good.” He also described being on the “other side” of the stage this time, with John Legend book-ending the panel, a set-up the self-proclaimed “end-seat kind of guy” loves.
In the chat, Levine described taking his whole family on tour with Maroon 5 on the band’s recent run of shows in Asia, as well as being a “heated” basketball coach for his kids and the group’s upcoming “M5LV” Las Vegas residency at the Dolby Live at Park MGM theater in March.
And though he didn’t reveal many details, Levine also promised that M5 has some new music coming “soon,” and though he admitted he always says it, he’s “the most excited” about the upcoming LP, their follow-up to 2021’s Jordi. “We scaled it back a little bit and I did some writing on my own.. I kept it tighter,” he said of writing some of the songs by himself, saying they “harken back to the older stuff.”
Watch Levine on The Jennifer Hudson Show below.
Paramount + has added more than 100 episodes of MTV Unplugged, VH1 Storytellers and CMT Crossroads to its streaming service. The return of the classic performances from seasons 1-8 and 10-13 includes some of the most beloved Unplugged sets ever, including Nirvana’s iconic Nov. 1993 performance, which was released seven months before the death of singer Kurt Cobain.
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The data dump of performances includes season one sets by Neil Young, Sinead O’Connor with The Church, Lenny Kravitz, Elton John, Shawn Mendes and Pearl Jam, with season two featuring Mariah Carey and Eric Clapton and season five spotlighting Bob Dylan, Tony Bennet and Stone Temple Pilots.
According to a press release, more than 70 of the episodes have not been available for more than 20 years.
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Season Six Unplugged highlights include KISS and Sheryl Crow, while season seven features Oasis, Alice in Chains and Seal, seasons eight has Shakira and R.E.M., season 13 brings a Korn set and season 17 has Queen Latifah, Wyclef Jean, Redman, Naughty By Nature’s Treach, Poor Righteous Teachers, Lady Luck, Lords of the Underground and the Sugar Hill Gang for a 2023 celebration of hip-hop’s 50th anniversary. (Click here for the full list of Unplugged episodes now available to stream).
The CMT Crossroads collection includes sets by Sheryl Crow & Willie Nelson, Melissa Etheridge and Dolly Parton, the Doobie Brother and Luke Bryan, Sting and Vince Gill, Black Pumas and Mickey Guyton, Boyz II Men and Brett Young, Halsey and Kelsea Ballerini, John Legend and Lee Ann Womack, Nelly & Friends (Kane Brown, Georgia Florida Line, Blanco Brown and Breland), OneRepublic and Dierks Bentley, Nick Jonas and Thomas Rhett and Stevie Nicks and Lady A.
The VH1 Storytellers list (which, like the Unplugged and CMT dumps, is missing random seasons) includes: Alicia Keys, Bruce Springsteen, Christina Aguilera, Coldplay, David Bowie, Ed Sheeran, Foo Fighters, Green Day, Mary J. Blige, P!nk, Ringo Starr, Snoop Dogg, Tom Waits and ZZ Top, among others.
Check out the full list of episodes below.
MTV Unplugged (Seasons 1-8, 10-13)Aerosmith (1990)Alanis Morissette (1999)Alice in Chains (1996)Alicia Keys (2005)Allman Brothers (1990)Annie Lenox (1992)Arrested Development (1993)Babyface & Friends feat. Stevie Wonder, Eric Clapton, and K-Ci & JoJo (1997)Bob Dylan (1994)Bryan Adams (1997)Chris Isaak (1995)Cranberries (1995)Crowded House/Tim Finn (1990)Dashboard Confessional (2002)Duran Duran (1993)Elton John (1990)Elvis Costello (1991)Eric Clapton (1992)Hall & Oates (1990)Hootie & the Blowfish (1996)Jewel (1997)John Mellencamp (1992)kd lang (1993)Kiss (1995)Korn (2007)Lenny Kravitz (1994)Live (1995)Mariah Carey (1992)Melissa Etheridge (1995)Neil Young (1990)Nirvana (1993)Oasis (1996)Paul McCartney (1991)Paul Simon (1992)Pearl Jam (1992)Queensryche (1992)R.E.M. (2001)Rod Stewart (1993)Seal (1996)Shakira (2001)Shawn Mendes (2017)Sheryl Crow (1995)Sinead O’Connor/The Church (1990)Smithereens/Graham Parker (1990)Soul Asylum (1993)Staind (2001)Sting (1991)Stone Temple Pilots (1994)The Wallflowers (1997)Tony Bennett (1994)Tori Amos (1996)Uptown Show feat. Jodeci, Father MC, Mary J. Blige, Christopher Williams, and Heavy D (1993)
VH1 Storytellers (seasons 1-9, 11-13, 15, 16)Alicia Keys (2012)Bee Gees (1997)Billy Joel (1997, 1998)Black Crowes (1996)Bruce Springsteen (2005)Christina Aguilera (2010)Coldplay (2005)Counting Crows (1997)Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (2000)Dave Matthews (1999)Dave Matthews Band (2005)David Bowie (1999)Def Leppard 1999)Ed Sheeran Live (2015)ELO (2001)Elton John LIVE (1997)Elvis Costello (1996)Eurythmics (1999)Foo Fighters (2009)Goo Goo Dolls (2002)Grace Potter & The Nocturnals (2012)Green Day (2005)Hanson (1998)Jewel (1999)Jill Scott (2012)John Mellencamp (1998)Johnny Cash & Willie Nelson (1997)Mary J. Blige (2008)Melissa Etheridge (1996)No Doubt (2000)P!nk (2012)Paul Simon (1997)Pete Townshend (2000)Phil Collins (1997)R.E.M. (1998)Ringo Starr (1998)Rod Stewart (1998)Sheryl Crow (1998)Snoop Dogg (2008)Stevie Nicks (1998)Sting (1996)Stone Temple Pilots (2000)The Chicks (2006)The Pretenders (1999)Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (1999)Tom Waits (1999)Tony Bennett (1998)Tori Amos (1999)Wyclef Jean (1999)ZZ Top (2009)
CMT Crossroads (seasons 1-3, 5, 10-16, 18-20)Black Pumas & Mickey Guyton (2022)Boyz II Men & Brett Young (2019)Brooks & Dunn and Friends feat. Luke Combs, Brett Young, Midland, Cody Johnson, Jon Pardi, and Brandon Lancaster (2019)Cheap Trick & Jennifer Nettles (2016)Gavin DeGraw & Chris Young (2019)Halsey & Kelsea Ballerini (2020)John Legend & Lee Ann Womack (2014)John Mellencamp & Darius Rucker (2017)Kid Rock & Hank Williams, Jr. (2002)LeAnn Rimes & Friends feat. Carly Pearce, Ashley McBryde, Mickey Guyton, and Brandy Clark (2021)Lindsey Buckingham & Little Big Town (2006)Lynyrd Skynyrd & Brantley Gilbert (2015)Lynyrd Skynyrd & Montgomery Gentry (2004)Melissa Etheridge & Dolly Parton (2003)Nathaniel Rateliff & Margo Price (2021)Nelly & Friends feat. Kane Brown, Florida Georgia Line, Blanco Brown, and Breland (2021)Nick Jonas & Thomas Rhett (2016)OneRepublic & Dierks Bentley (2014)Randy Travis & The Avett Brothers (2012)Sheryl Crow & Friends feat. Chris Stapleton, Joe Walsh, Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Lucius, and more (2019)Sheryl Crow & Willie Nelson (2002)Stevie Nicks & Lady A (2013)Sting & Vince Gill (2011)The Doobie Brothers & Luke Bryan (2011)Willie Nelson & Friends feat. Neil Young, Jack White, Sheryl Crow, Leon Russell, Ashley Monroe, Norah Jones, and Jamey Johnson (2013)
The Jennifer Hudson Show has been renewed for a fourth season. Warner Bros. Television Group announced the news on Wednesday (Feb. 19), revealing that the Emmy-nominated syndicated daytime talker will be back for the 2025-2026 season on Fox Television stations.
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“It is an unbelievable privilege to spend your days being able to engage with inspiring people from all walks of life; to hear their stories and connect on shared experiences; and to hopefully leave audiences a little more joyful than when they arrived,” said EGOT-winner Hudson in a statement. “This show is a testament to what happens when you do what you love, and when you do it alongside an unstoppable team who creates magic in new ways every single day. I’m so excited to take this adventure to new heights in season 4!”
To date, the series has earned a number of industry honors, including two NAACP Awards — Outstanding Talk Show Series (2024) and Outstanding Talk Show Host (2023) — as well as the Excellence in Media Award at the 2024 GLAAD Media Awards, where it also took home the Outstanding Variety of Talk Show Episode prize. Hudson also won the 2024 National Association of Broadcaster’s TV Chairman’s awards in 2024 for the series that has racked up 10 Daytime Emmy nominations since its debut in September 2022.
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“Audiences and our great television station partners agreed – JHud is must have television. We believe in great programming, and Warner Bros. Television Group always delivers for our business and fans,” David Decker, president of content sales at Warner Bros. Discovery said in a statement.
Lauren Bincoe, SVP or current programming at Telepictures added, “Jennifer Hudson’s extraordinary talent and ability to connect with people have made The Jennifer Hudson Show a standout in daytime. This season, the show has seen incredible growth, creating moments that resonate beyond the screen – like the viral sensation Spirit Tunnel being a powerful example. Jennifer embodies the show’s Choose Joy message in every episode, and as we head into season 4, we’re grateful for the continued support of our station partners and proud to build on this momentum with Jennifer and our award-winning production team.”
Guests this season have included former First Lady Michelle Obama, Usher, Angela Bassett, Keke Palmer, Gwen Stefani, Cynthia Erivo, Kelly Rowland, Jimmy Kimmel, Smokey Robinson and Keith Urban, among others. Upcoming guests include: Kevin Hart, BLACKPINK’S Jennie, Maroon 5’s Adam Levine, Tina Knowles, Regina Hall, and Big Sean, among others.
Hudson celebrated the the news by doing one of her show’s signature celebratory spirit tunnel walks with her staff, who sang about the good news and the good vibes they keep spreading.
Watch Hudson announce the renewal below.
Pete Davidson is in the midst of a major make-over. The Saturday Night Live veteran and star of the new box office-topping animated flick DogMan has been showing off the results of hours of painful laser sessions to burn of the more than 200 tattoos that once riddled his torso while making the rounds to promote this weekend’s SNL50: The Anniversary Celebration special.
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He’s also talking, a bit, about his string of high-profile romances and how his tabloid-target dating life while on the show turned into a huge distraction, including his whirlwind romance, engagement and break-up with Ariana Grande. “It was pretty humiliating and upsetting, honestly,” he told Page Six of the attention and noise that his personal life got during his eight seasons (2014-2022) on the show. “Everyone is dating everyone and it’s Hollywood. Look at Paul Mescal, Timmy [Chalamet], Barry Keough,” he said. “But because I’m ugly, they wrote about me. I was harassed for like five years and it made my life a living hell.”
Davidson, 31, said the focus on his off-screen romances with Kim Kardashian, Kaia Gerber, Kate Beckinsdale and Cazzie David became “embarrassing,” because he wanted people to focus on his comedy and sketch work on SNL as one of the youngest, some might say rawest, performers to ever take the stage at Studio 8H. “All that got pushed to the side because of who I was dating,” said Davidson, who auditioned for the show when he was 20.
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In one of his rare public comments about the blink-and-you-missed-it 2018 romance with Grande that began in the spring, led to an engagement in June and a break-up that October — during which he got four tattoos dedicated to Grande and she wrote a song for him, “Pete Davidison,” for her Sweetener album — Davidson said things are good these days.
“When we see each other, which is few and far between, because we’re not in the same circles, it’s all love,” Davidson said of the singer/actress, who is nominated for her first Oscar for best supporting actress in Wicked. “I hope she wins the Oscar, I hope she takes the gold,” he added. “I’ve had some pretty adult relationships with some pretty amazing women, and when it’s ended it’s been cool.”
As for that phrase that has followed him around since that time in reference to his Grande-confirmed endowment with “BDE” (aka big d–k energy), Davidson said that, too, is a bit much. “I’m a very sensitive person and it’s humiliating to see a picture of yourself eating a sandwich in a pink T-shirt with the headline ‘This is what BDE is,’” Davidson said.
Davidson is showing off his newly blank skin canvas in revealing ads for women’s clothing company Reformation and he told Page Six that after breaking up with Outer Banks actress Madelyn Cline last summer he hasn’t been dating anyone. “I’m starting to turn my life around,” said the comedian who has been open about his longtime struggle with substance use and mental health issues.
Clean and sober and out of the glare at the moment, Davidson said he feels for other stars who get descended on by the paparazzi, specifically calling out the attention focused on Justin Bieber and wife Hailey Bieber. “I look at other celebrities and I’m less judgy. They’re dogging Bieber now — leave the kid alone, he’s clearly exhausted and just trying to be a father to his kid,” said Davidson, who added that he dreams of one day having a life like his friend comedian and former SNL writer John Mulaney, who has two children with actress Olivia Munn.
“I hope that happens for me,” Davidson said.
SNL50: The Anniversary Celebration will air live on NBC at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday (Feb. 16) and then stream on Peacock.
You know how it is when you’re lost in the riff, head banging so hard that you unleash a torrent of embarrassing white flakes. No, not that kind. That’s the dilemma facing Saturday Night Live cast mates Bowen Yang and Sarah Sherman in a new CeraVe shampoo ad in which they portray the lead singers […]
Since filing for divorce from ex-husband Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) in 2021, Kim Kardashian has mostly kept quiet about the couple’s relationship, how they are co-parenting their four children and whatever feelings she might have about West’s repeated public meltdowns in which he spouts hate-filled antisemitic invective for days on end.
But in Thursday’s (Feb. 13) episode of The Kardashians, Kim opened up a bit about what may have caused the dissolution of the couple’s marriage while bonding with sister Khloé about her own marital issues. After having an emotional reunion with her ex-husband, retired NBA player Lamar Odom, after nine years apart, Khloé said she got married “too quickly” to Odom.
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Though their marriage lasted only five tumultuous years, Khloé said she “wouldn’t change a thing” about marrying the man she called the “love of my life,” lamenting that if it weren’t for Odom’s well-publicized struggles with substance use they might still be together. “I know I picked the right person at that time,” she told Kim and their mother, Kris Jenner, in the episode.
Kim seemed to relate to the sentiment, seemingly referencing her struggles with West, saying, “That’s the hardest part. I’ve been there. When you don’t foresee something happening that really changes a person’s personality and then they’re not the same person and you can’t ever get that person back, but you can’t live with the new person. I get it.”
Kim had more to say in a confessional segment, adding, “It’s tougher when you don’t want your marriage to end off of personal reasons but circumstances change that force your marriage to end. When you weren’t planning on that and that’s not really the outcome you want but there’s no other option, I think it makes it harder to get over.”
While the SKIMS founder never specifically named West in the episode of the Hulu series, it appeared as if she was referencing their relationship, which ended with Kardashian stating in a petition to be considered legally single in early 2022 that Ye was “creating emotional distress” by sharing “misinformation” about their private family matters.
While the reality star was open to talking about what she said at the time was West’s struggle with bipolar disorder during their relationship, the rapper recently claimed that his now-wife, Bianca Censori, has told him that he was mis-diagnosed and is likely on the autism spectrum.
Kardashian’s comments on the show — which is taped months before the episodes air — came just a few days after West deleted his X account following a four-day spree of virulently antisemitic posts in which he declared once again “I’m a Nazi” and “I love Hitler,” before briefly offering a shirt emblazoned with a Nazi swastika for sale on his Yeezy site.
The offensive posts have once again caused serious professional fall-out for West, who has been criticized for spreading hate speech by the ADL and fellow artists, as well as being dropped by his booking agent and hit with a lawsuit by a Jewish staffer who alleged that he compared himself to Hitler and threatened her because she is Jewish.
You may not always be able to sing them at work in full voice, but over the past half century Saturday Night Live has given us some of the most hilarious, surprisingly tuneful (and often NSFW) musical shorts and original comedy tunes in TV history.
From second season cast member Bill Murray’s smarmy Nick the Lounge Singer’s groovy original Star Wars theme song to Eddie Murphy’s dead-on impersonation of soul legend James Brown and Adam Sandler’s seasonal classic “Hanukkah Song” and howling Opera Man bits, the sketches work because — as former cast member Maya Rudolph said in one of the recent anniversary specials — “when you can really sing, that’s when you’re the funniest.”
Plus, when you really, really love the music you’re spoofing, it shows, as in the legendary “More Cowbell” sketch and, of course, Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg’s ribbon-rung new jack surprise, “D–k in a Box.” Whether they’re parody songs, topical tunes or just left-field jams about crypto currency or airport sushi, the show has always found a way to balance earworm singability with LOL lyrics.
In the recent Questlove-directed Ladies & Gentleman… 50 Years of SNL Music primetime special, Rudolph — an accomplished vocalist herself, and daughter of legendary soul singer Minnie Riperton — explained that Murphy’s eerily spot-on version of Stevie Wonder was so perfectly funny, “not because he’s dressed as Stevie Wonder… it’s funny because he’s pulling off the musicality of Stevie Wonder.”
Parody songs and original musical bits have been a part of the show’s fabric since the Not-Ready-For-Primetime-Players debuted on Oct. 11, 1975 with a cast including future legends Chevy Chase, Laraine Newman, Dan Akroyd, John Belushi, Jane Curtin, Garrett Morris, Gilda Radner and others. But the volume, quality and virality of the show’s for-laughs songs have rocketed to new heights over the past 20 years thanks to a string of stone cold killer tunes from the Samberg-led writing/producing trio The Lonely Island.
Their roster of must-pass-around bits are among the modern era’s most beloved, including such chart-worthy ditties as “Lazy Sunday” — the first SNL digital short to blow up on a then-nascent YouTube — to “Motherlover,” “Jizz in My Pants,” “I’m on a Boat” and “I Just Had Sex.”
The trio’s golden ear for musical comedy gold has continued to keep SNL buzzing in our ears as recent casts have added in such modern marvels as “Murder Show,” “Yolo” and “This is Not a Feminist Song,” as well as former writer and frequent guest host John Mulaney’s bonkers off-Broadway-worthy musical extravaganzas. And if you missed A Complete Unknown star Timothée Chalamet’s 2020 ode to his favorite miniature mount, “Tiny Horse,” the first time — saddle up, it’s a whole ride.
Though the list of our favorites is way longer — and you won’t find any of Belushi’s iconic Blues Brothers bits here, because they featured covers of classic blues songs, not originals — here are our 50 favorite SNL original songs/musical shorts ever, as we prepare for the all-star prime-time SNL 50 special on NBC airing this Sunday (Feb. 16).
“Hotline Bling Parody”