Month: March 2023

SZA had an off day between her February 28 show at Boston’s TD Garden and tonight’s (March 2) show at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center on her headlining SOS Tour. Well, SZA has had the No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 for 10 nonconsecutive weeks since SOS arrived in December, so her off day was spent at Billboard‘s Women In Music 2023 event in Los Angeles last night.

Unsurprisingly, SZA was there to accept Woman Of The Year. The “Kill Bill” mastermind began by thanking her inner circle, including her parents (who were in attendance), before launching into her improvised speech.

Read it in full below.

“A couple days ago, MeLisa was like, ‘You should probably’ — I was about to go on stage. Every day before I go on stage — I’m on tour right now, but today’s my day off on tour. But [MeLisa] was like, ‘You should take time to write your speech.’ And I’m like, ‘OK,’ and then [I heard], ’10 seconds to stage!’ And I’m like, ‘OK.’ So, I didn’t write anything, but that’s also not who I am. I’m a very off-the-dome kind of person.

I guess what I wanted to say is there’s so many women in this room right now that I respect so deeply. This could have been any of us in the room, whether it’s Lana Del Rey or Olivia Rodrigo or Chlöe or Doechii, who’s a f*cking star. Or Latto. Or even Coi [Leray], my very own Jersey baby.

I think, sometimes, there’s a misconception that everybody always feels like that girl. Like, ‘Oh, I know I’m that b*tch, and I have a lot of confidence.’ And I feel like, it’s OK to not be that person all the time. I used to feel like I didn’t belong because I don’t always feel like that, but I realized that the key is to stay open and available for whatever the universe or God wants to do with your life.

And it’s like, even when you don’t know who you are or you may not see — I don’t know why I’m 10 weeks on [the Billboard 200]! I’m grateful, but I really just want my life to be more than music. To be more than an artist. I wanna serve others. I want to serve people. I want to be open and available to whatever God wants for me. And saying yes to everything that’s scary, to everything that feels like it’s not for you or where you don’t belong is really the only way that we walk through those doors.

So, I just encourage everybody to continue to be inspired and just stay available. You don’t have to be confident. You don’t have to even know that you are the one or anything like that. You just have to say yes to the possibility, and I’m grateful. And thank y’all for saying yes to me. I hope everybody has a blessed night. Thank you very much.”

Rosalía is surprisingly down-to-earth for someone who made history with her latest album, 2022’s Motomami. The star has collaborated with world-dominating artists like Billie Eilish and The Weeknd, yet in accepting the Producer Of The Year Award at the ‘Billboard’ Women In Music Awards, she talked about the way being a producer let her lean into her obsession by spending hours in the studio instead of doing “cool sh*t.”

“A producer’s job is a job in the shadow,” the “Chicken Teriyaki” singer said. “Just producers know what other producers have done. Let’s be real. And it’s not very fun. It’s not. Whoever tells you otherwise, they lying. It’s like 15 hours a day nonstop maybe working on a sound. It comes from love, it comes from obsession maybe a little bit. That’s why you stay in that small-ass room, no windows, while everybody else around you is at home just chilling, eating something nice, laughing, having sex, living life, just regular human, cool sh*t, you know?”

Later, she added, “This means a lot because I make my own music and I produce my own songs and I write my own songs.” She then dedicated the award to “all the women that are gonna be producers.”

Watch her full speech above.

Marjorie Taylor Greene truly must be the Ultra-MAGA Energizer Bunny of Congress. She continues to stumble into her own traps — while not seeing the point of Chris Stapleton’s involvement with the Super Bowl’s Black National Anthem showcase and while accidentally proving her own point about declining math literacy — and of course, she has spent a lot of time heckling President Biden. Admittedly, he is not too great at firing barbs back (like his predecessor), but that’s also a strength in a way because, hey, it’s now a novel sight for a president to not spend his whole day on Twitter.

Biden must have had finally had enough, though, of Greene heckling him during both of his State of the Union addresses so far. She also came for him with a grievous numerical flub (on illegal immigration) that felt like more than a typo, and this week, she falsely claimed that Biden should be on the hook for fentanyl deaths that actually went down during President Trump’s time in office. A Greene spokesperson responded to CNN’s fact checking with curse words and scorn, but Biden is now talking back.

Actually, he pulled off a rarely successful set of Biden zingers while reacting to House Democrats. It was downright savage.

“A little bit more of Marjorie Taylor Greene and a few more and you’re going to have a lot of Republicans running our way,” Biden began. “Isn’t she amazing?

He continued: “She was saying that a poor mom that lost two kids, that I killed her sons. The interesting thing is that fentanyl they took came during the last administration.”

People loved to see the public pushback. Not only did Joe’s built-in audience of Dems hand him a standing ovation, but Twitter users were also pleasantly surprised to see this happen.

Sleepy Joe woke up. Now let him have a nap because we could all use one.

Billie Eilish was the ultimate fan growing up, and she’s grown to become peers with most of her former idols. A young Billie loved Justin Bieber so much that her parents “did consider” getting her therapy for it. Years later, Bieber jumped on Eilish’s “Bad Guy” remix and attended her 21st birthday party last December.

Lana Del Rey is in the same tier.

“You were my first lock screen on the first phone I ever got,” Billie Eilish told Lana Del Rey for Interview Magazine in February. Del Rey cited that conversation while on the red carpet at the 2023 Billboard Women In Music event in Los Angeles last night, March 1.

“With Billie, I mean, talk about a woman who’s, like, cooked good all the way through,” Del Rey said. “Not only the way she sings, her vocal inflections, you can’t even copy it, but as a person, she’s just — every now and then, you meet someone who’s just a good person. And it’s not like that’s a requirement — in fact, usually, it’s the opposite — to be a good artist. But she just happens to be both.”

She continued, “When we did Interview Magazine and she interviewed me, and she just talked about how her first phone screen picture was of me with the bee. I mean, picture me in my bedroom freaking out. ‘Cause she’s, like, my living legend. It’s fun to have a little camaraderie there.”

When asked by Billboard‘s Lyndsey Havens if she’d work with Eilish, Del Rey emphatically assured, “Oh, I feel like I’m sure, at some point, we will.”

Del Rey was honored with the Visionary Award, which was presented to her by Olivia Rodrigo.

Watch her red carpet interview above and find her Visionary Award acceptance speech below.

Pedro Pascal has been racking up rave reviews for his portrayal of Joel Miller in The Last of Us, but apparently, another star came very close to snatching up the role for the hit series. In a new interview with Jeffrey Pierce, who voiced Joel’s brother Tommy in the PlayStation game, HBO was looking at a future Marvel star instead of Pascal. Those casting choices gave Pierce a heads up that he probably wouldn’t be playing Tommy in the series, but he did land a role as Perry, the right-hand man to Melanie Lynskey’s Kathleen.

Via The Direct:

So… I think initially they had talked to Mahershala Ali about playing Joel, which is an obvious cue that I’m not gonna play Tommy… And when they cast Pedro [Pascal], I knew like, yeah, that was certainly not going to happen regardless, I’m older than Pedro Pascal. So I was not under harboring any illusions about that, for sure.

Pierce also revealed that before HBO stepped in, The Last of Us was almost adapted into a movie, and for a while, there was talk of an animated series.

“There have been a couple of different iterations over time,” Pierce said. “There was a movie at one point. There was a motion-capture cinematic animated series at one point. And both of those are things that I thought, ‘I got a pretty good shot at being involved to some degree.’”

Ultimately, HBO brought in Chernobyl creator Craig Mazin to take a crack at a live-action series, and with the help of The Last of Us game creator Neil Druckmann, the two have pulled off the unthinkable by adapting a video game into a prestige TV drama.

(Via The Direct)

Following the season finale of Mayfair Witches (the second installment in AMC’s expanding Rice-verse), star Alexandra Daddario spoke to Harper’s Bazaar about all things fashion. The actress, who recently attended the Christian Dior presentation at Paris Fashion Week, said that “whenever I put something great on, it can just instinctively make me feel confident.”

She continued, “When I was a young actress coming from New York and didn’t have much, my focus was getting auditions and wearing what I needed to for work and for being in character. Now, as I get older, I’m embracing what I love and feel good in, and am really coming into my own.”

Daddario was also asked about when she feels most beautiful (besides when she’s changing into her bathing suit on The White Lotus). “After I’ve had my hair and make-up done by other people – they’re much better at it than I am!” she said. “I also feel gorgeous just walking around my house wearing my pajamas and being surrounded by family. I just feel so lucky.” Her fashion inspirations include Charlize Theron, Angelina Jolie, Emily Ratajkowski (“These women wear their clothes with such confidence”), and this hotel cat.

It’s a better hotel experience than her time in Hawaii.

(Via Harper’s Bazaar)

The Billboard Women In Music Awards took place last night (March 1), using Women’s History Month as a reason to celebrate women in the music industry. A spotlight was on Chlöe, who’s releasing her new album In Pieces soon as well as taking it out on a tour. She was on hand to present Latto with the Powerhouse Award.

“We just need the opportunities,” she said when asked in a red carpet interview how the industry could help women producers. “I definitely think there’s a lot more than who are given opportunities. The reason I got into producing as a young girl was because for sis and I, no producers wants to produce things for a 12- and 10-year-old. So I took matters into my own hands. I always loved math and science and had been a huge nerd with that, so it was fun combining my love of technology and music together. I executive-produced my album dropping in a month and there’s only two songs I didn’t produce.”

Unfortunately, Chlöe has also been at the center of criticism for having a Chris Brown feature for the track “How Does It Feel” on her new album due to his history of harassment, battery, sexual assault, and more. That song is out now as a single.

Watch her full interview above.

In Pieces is out 3/31 via Parkwood Entertainment/Columbia Records. Pre-save it here.

The 2023 Billboard Women In Music Awards went down last night (March 1) and during the ceremony, Lana Del Rey was given the Visionary Award. She was introduced by Olivia Rodrigo, who heaped heavy praise on Del Rey and on one of her songs in particular.

After rattling off some Del Rey stats (15 songs on the Hot 100 chart, eight top-10 albums) and other resume bullet points, Rodrigo (who was named Woman Of The Year at last year’s ceremony) said, “Lana has raised an entire generation of music lovers and songwriters like me, and taught them that there’s beauty in their vulnerability and power in their melancholy.”

She continued, “The first song I ever heard of Lana’s was ‘Video Games,’ which… I still consider that song to be probably the best love song of all time. She captures sadness, anger, and sensuality in a way only the greatest of songwriters ever could.”

Rodrigo then concluded:

“What I admire the most about Lana, though, even more than her perfectly written albums, life-changing poetry, and heavenly voice is her unwavering authenticity. Lana has forged her own path her entire career, constantly raising the bar for herself and creating art that pushes boundaries and changes lives. She never sacrificed her unique voice and perspective on a world and an industry that constantly tries to put people in a box. And if that doesn’t make you a visionary, I truly don’t know what does.

She’s also just, like, the coolest, kindest, nicest girl to ever exist, and Lana: I love you.

Watch Rodrigo’s Del Rey speech above. Also check out Del Rey’s acceptance speech below.

After Elon Musk purchased Twitter for an unfathomable amount of money, a lot of people vowed to quit the platform. Most didn’t (Mastodon is emptier than a Chick-fil-A on Sunday), but Hasan Minhaj has. It took awhile, but the moment of “f*ck this, I’m done with the app crashing and bots and whatever the hell this is” came during Wednesday’s episode of The Daily Show.

“Since Elon’s takeover, all I see is, ‘Twitter sucks.’ ‘We should leave Twitter.’ ‘Elon ruined Twitter.’ But here’s the thing, guys: Elon didn’t make Twitter terrible, Twitter has been terrible for years because of us!” Minhaj said. He called it the “sh*ttiest platform on planet Earth,” but “as bad as it gets, no one ever leaves!” After listing all the reasons that Twitter is terrible (“It’s all ISIS beheadings and clout”), Minhaj came to a realization: that he’s the “living embodiment” of Twitter for bitching about it but still having an account, and it’s not fair to judge “other people without changing anything about myself.”

So, he said goodbye to the fail whale for good.

“F*ck this,” Minhaj said. “I’m leaving Twitter. I’m leaving this hellscape right now. Let’s do this right now.”

I learned two things: Minhaj is a man of his word, and The Daily Show office has a good wifi signal. You can watch the clip above.

Taylor Sheridan’s vast assembling of Paramount shows includes several existing and in-development shows that aren’t directly related to Yellowstone. However, that franchise reigns supreme and shall remain near and dear to the former Sons of Anarchy cop and Oscar-nominated screenwriter’s followers. As such, the TV world currently awaits word about whether the Yellowstone flagship show will truly see the exit of Kevin Costner from the franchise.

If that ever happens, viewers can take comfort in a steady supply of offshoots that does not appear to be ending anytime soon. 1883 came and went and starred Sam Elliott, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, and Billy Bob Thornton. 1923 remains ongoing and stars Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. There’s reportedly a Matthew McConaughey role in development, although no one knows if that applies to a freestanding show or another one already in existence. And then there’s the upcoming 6666, which (to outsiders) might sound like something demonic is involved.

A haunted ranch? No, that’s not the case. The in-development show’s title directly refers to a real-life, legendary ranch — 6666 or the Four Sixes — in West Texas. The title also makes a direct reference to a Yellowstone Season 5 episode, in which John Dutton’s daughter, Beth, decided to “to start selling Yellowstone-branded beef” after being inspired by the 6666 ranch. Presumably, the spinoff would take place at the ranch and follow any soap operatics involved. What’s particularly interesting, though, is that Sheridan walks the walk so much that he actually owns this ranch.

At least, that’s the case since mid 2021, as the Fort Worth Star-Telegram initially reported, when Sheridan managed to pony up at least $320 million for the historic swath of land that is twice as big as Chicago and “legendary” in ranching circles after being founded in 1879 by Samuel “Burk” Burnett. A few years following the sale, the Four Sixes General Manager, Jim Leathers (yes, that’s his actual name), is now speaking up about how the sale went down. The Abilene Reporter-News relays Leather’s speech at the recent Agriculture Legacy Luncheon, in which he referred to “Taylor Sheridan and the ‘Yellowstone’ bunch” while admitting that he hadn’t heard of Sheridan ahead of his interest to buy.

Given that Sheridan wanted the Yellowstone franchise to start filming at Four Sixes, Leathers initially decided that he wasn’t interested. Then Sheridan, who was the sixth prospective buyer after the first five didn’t work out, took a three-day tour of Four Sixes, and he won Leathers over, but it wasn’t easy:

“He came, and I told him that I could see a whole lot more downside than upside, Why would I jeopardize the reputation of the ranch just to be on TV?” Leathers got up and walked out.

“Lo and behold, I work for the guy now,” Leathers said, to laughter. “I have not seen a show of ‘Yellowstone’ to this day.”

Sheridan apparently was able to cobble up enough investors to help him pull together the additional $300,000 million that he needed to purchase Four Sixes, and with all of that capital involved, one can bet that there are big Yellowstone plans for the ranch in addition to utility. 1883 filmed on the premises, and with a freaking title like 6666, it’s safe to assume that this series will go down in its natural habitat, too.

Heck, with all of the overarching significance involved with such a pricey ranch investment, 6666 should prove to be a major part of the overarching Sheridan universe of shows. And although Leathers claims to have never watched Yellowstone or its offshoots, he does acknowledge that the show isn’t “accurate” to ranching life, but Sheridan “put enough sugar on the cookie for people to watch it.” And the rest, as they say, is pop culture history.

(Via Abilene Reporter-News, Texas Monthly & Southern Living)