Eminem will be co-producing a new documentary called Stans through his Shady Films company, which will focus on the rise in intense fandoms when it comes to music. The title creatively pulls inspiration from the rapper’s song, “Stan,” which popularized the term for an obsessed fan — or stalker plus fan.
It will be directed by Steven Leckart and be released later this year, according to Variety.
Stans has specifically been described as a “revealing, edgy, and disarmingly personal journey into the world of superfandom, told through the lens of one of the world’s most iconic and enduring artists, Eminem, and the fans that worship him.”
“Stans will be the opportunity for us to turn the camera around and ask the audience about being fans — and in some cases, fanatics,” Eminem’s manager, Stuart Rosenberg, and Stuart Parr shared in a joint statement. “This is a study of the relationship between fanbase and artist through the lens of one of Eminem’s most fascinating songs and one of the world’s most important entertainers.”
“Paul Rosenberg and I have known each other since my days on MTV’s TRL, a show that was driven by the power of fandom, bringing artists and their fans together,” Tony DiSanto, the CEO of Diga Studios, added. “So when he told me about the idea for this film, it felt like we had come full circle. Stans will explore the complex relationship between fame and super fandom, told through the lens of one of the world’s most Iconic artists, Eminem, his music, and, especially, his most extreme fans.”
If you could change one thing about Stranger Things, what would it be? The objectively correct answer is: give us the final season now, Netflix, or else… But threats aside, members of the show’s active subreddit had a wide variety of different responses when that question was recently posed by a fan.
“The reason S1 was so great was because it was three different genres tied into one storyline. You had the kids on an E.T. coming of age adventure, the teenagers in a typical horror movie (with romance elements) and the adults in a thriller mystery investigating government corruption. I think each season needs to stick to that kind of genre entwining. Season 2 kind of picks up on that a little but completely loses it by the third,” kodaandorion wrote.
Deathgaze2015 believes “Eleven should not be the Maguffin for every seasons big bad. Let the other cast do the final thing,” while RainbowPenguin1000 “would have removed the Russians from the entire show.” Here’s more:
Will’s haircut
Hopper’s diet
Less added characters over the seasons. I know the Duffers liked to add them because it can change up the dynamics, but the cast got so large that the balance of ST1 and ST2 was lost.
Cut down the cast by a third. It’s too big in the sense that characters are either doing nothing (Robin in season 4) or given stupid side stories because they feel like they should be doing something (Jonathon being a stoner).
I’m not even saying kill off the characters but maybe make it like the real world. Kids move away. Even kids that stay fall out of touch and people that used to be best friends now just kind of say hey as they pass each other in the hall. Not every person who has a spot in an episode or two in the show needs to join the main cast.
People will hate this, but I would have preferred it if Max had stayed dead at the end of S4, it would have been a much more emotional ending and a learning curve for the characters especially the kids that no-one is safe. It would have also heightened tension heading into S5.
Keeping everyone in the main cast together. It’s okay if they breakaway from each other every now and then for 1-3 episodes max, but having the group fragmented into three sub-groups for an entire season is tiring. I love everyone being together. At worst, the groups should be divided into kids, adults, and teens each in their own like it was in season 1.
So basically: no Russians; keep the core group together; and for the love of god, give Will a better haircut. Good advice!
Stranger Things will return for its fifth and final season in 2025.
It’s been almost two years since Keanu Reeves confirmed that a Constantine sequel is in the works, but the man sure has been busy since then, so it would be pretty understandable if he had forgotten. Just last year alone, Reeves released an album, starred in John Wick 4, and was even crowned the Puppy King, an incredibly rare honor. But he has promised fans he is not giving up on Constantine because that would be a sin.
The film, based on DC’s Hellblazer comics, followed John Constantine, an occult expert who can travel between Earth and Hell. Even though Reeves has been moonlighting as an angel on Aziz Ansari’s latest flick, the Constantine sequel has not yet started production. Still, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura is hopeful that the sequel will move forward.
“I hope it does, because it’s a great character,” di Bonaventura recently told ComicBook.com. “Great in comic books, and it was great making that first movie. It’s such an alternative kind of character,” he said. He then compared the character to Madame Web, if you can believe it, adding, “It’s what really attracted me to Madame Web, was the singularity of the character, that idea that she is going to become blind and that she is going to become this other thing was really attractive.” Even though the producer was “attracted” to the concept of Madame Web, many weren’t.
On the other hand, the people have been begging for a Constantine reboot, so it’s more likely to happen. Even if we have to get through a few more Madame Webs to get there.
The world is still abuzz over the Queen Bey. This past Sunday (February 11), Beyoncé broke the internet after dropping two new country singles, “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em.” Showcasing her versatility, Bey continues to show us that she can nail any genre.
In fact, she did so last year when she dropped her rap single, “My House,” which premiered in tandem with her Renaissance concert film. As a result of her fire bars, one might think this would put her on some sort of greatest rappers of all time list. At least, such was the case for a contestant on Jeopardy.
In a category for “50 Greatest Rappers of All Time,” contestants were given a prompt, which read “She invited us to ‘come into my house’ and also deal with ‘the wrath of my madness’; We bow down before this queen.”
One contestant answered, “Who is Beyoncé?” presumably thinking the prompt was referring to “My House.” Unfortunately, this was not the correct answer.
Another contestant answered “Who is Queen Latifah,” which was in fact, the correct answer. The prompt was alluding to Latifah’s songs, “Come Into My House” and “Wrath Of My Madness” from her 1989 album, All Hail The Queen.
Selena Gomez appears to be teasing fans with some new music on the way after fans spotted a cryptic message from the pop star. “Clock in, baby get to work,” the message reads, as it seems to be song lyrics, according to the Pop Base. “Night shift, but get all the perks.”
Along with the phrase, there is a heart-shaped lock, with the code set to 222, which fans interpret as a possible release date, February 22.
Selena Gomez teases possible lyrics to her upcoming single:
Back in 2021, Gomez dropped the music video for “De Una Vez,” which ended by focusing on a magical heart. Or, as one fan put it, a reflection of how she feels in love. “As you remember, she left last era with a bulletproof heart to come back to us 3 years after to unlock her heart to the world,” the fan posted as part of a Twitter thread, pointing out that it might have been an easter egg.
As you remember, she left last era with a bulletproof heart to come back to us 3 years after to unlock her heart to the world pic.twitter.com/bWa31ZMyCA
“There’s not one sad song on my album — and I don’t mean that in a way, like, everything is not full of meaning because I think even the most poppy songs can have heart,” she said. “I want that to come across, but I genuinely don’t feel like I have anything in me to write something negative. It just doesn’t match with where I am anymore.”
Only time will tell if Selena Gomez is working on releasing something new.
As family patriarch Logan Roy, esteemed Scottish actor Brian Cox was a terrifying and imposing presence on Succession. Everyone feared him from his children to the President of the United States, and apparently, that was the case in real life.
Fresh off her Emmy win for her Season 4 performance as Shiv Roy, Sarah Snook opened up about working with Cox, who could be just as intimidating as his character thanks to his well-documented “hangry” moments and to keep his co-workers on their toes.
Speaking to Mariella Frostrup on Times Radio, Snook laughed: “He has a habit of sometimes going into a false — or could it be real, who knows? — diabetic rage, where he’ll go [growl] all of a sudden.
“I think part of it’s a little of trying to just jolt the energy of the set and rustle a few feathers, get it going and moving faster. The quality of his voice can be very terrifying sometimes, for sure. Thunderous.”
Justine Lupe, who played Willa on the critically acclaimed series, also spoke of Cox’s ability to dominate the set, but noted that he was it mostly theatrical bluster and he’s actually very sweet.
“Brian has moments of being incredibly intimidating on and off camera,” Lupe told Times Radio last year. “He’s got a power to him as a person and I think he knows that about himself. That being said, he’s also one of the more kind people that I’ve interacted with on set … He was always so supportive and sweet.”
While Lana Del Rey is gearing up for her new country-inspired album, Lasso, she is also taking time to focus on other musical projects. As part of the Jack Antonoff-organized soundtrack for Apple TV+’s new show, The New Look, Del Rey covered “Blue Skies.”
Del Rey is a perfect fit, as she brings the retro vibes over a gentle jazzy instrumental that eventually picks up the pacing. If fans are looking for a possible comparison, it feels more like Honeymoon or later albums in Del Rey’s discography. Yet, even with that, it’s quite different to anything the pop star has released herself.
Originally written by Irving Berlin in 1926, the song eventually gained popularity later that year by appearing in the Broadway musical, Betsy, according to Stereogum. From there, a ton of jazz icons put different spins on the track throughout the decades.
This is also the second preview from Antonoff’s soundtrack for The New Look, as The 1975 dropped “Now Is The Hour,” an original song.
Check out Del Rey’s “Blue Skies” cover above.
The New Look premieres on Apple TV+ 2/14 with three episodes, and additional episodes streaming weekly.
The New Look soundtrack is out 4/3 via Shadow Of The City and Dirty Hit. Find more information here.
Welcome to another installment of Ask A Music Critic! And thanks to everyone who has sent me questions. Please keep them coming at [email protected].I was thrilled to see Oasis nominated for the Rock Hall recently. In reality, though, how likely are they to actually get in on this first nomination? They have so much rock ‘n’ roll cred that I feel they’re a sure thing. But I’m still worried, especially given the relative lack of actual rock bands inducted into the Hall lately. Not to mention the fact that no one in the Oasis camp has acknowledged the nomination, barring Liam tweeting about how the Hall is full of “bumbaclarts.” At least I know you’ll be voting for them! — Brianna in Kansas City
First things first: Congratulations on the Super Bowl! I hope you celebrated the win with a hearty platter from Gates Bar-B-Q. (I have fond memories of that place from the last time I was in KC.) For the rest of the country, there was simply nothing better than watching inevitable winners win yet again. Sunday was a big day for your team, Taylor Swift, death, and taxes. Cheering for the Chiefs was like rooting for my skin to slowly wrinkle before completely wasting away. At least I know I won’t be surprised!
Now that I have those jokes and KC references out of my system, let’s talk about two of my favorite subjects, Oasis and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall Of Fame. I am a Rock Hall voter, and I normally don’t like to tip my hand on who I am voting for until I write my annual Rock Hall Ballot column. But I did already announce my intentions to vote for Oasis, since anyone who cares at all about my musical opinions knows this is a foregone conclusion. Though I am also inclined to support all alt-leaning rock bands from the 1980s and ’90s, as these groups have struggled to get inducted over the years, even the ones (like Oasis) that sold millions of records and garnered billions of streams. As you suggest, Brianna, there’s been a focus in recent years on inducting artists from genres outside of rock with the (noble) intention of broadening the Rock Hall’s scope. There’s also a (factually inaccurate) belief that all of the significant rock acts have already gone in, so why not induct Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson? These trends obviously hurt Oasis’ chances.
I’m going to save my case for why Oasis should go in for my Rock Hall Ballot column. For now, I’ll stick to the specifics of your question and focus on whether Oasis will make it. I’m going to keep my opinion out of it and dispassionately prognosticate the hell out of this.
Let’s start with what Oasis has in their favor.
No. 1, the Rock Hall has a heavy bias in favor of commercially successful acts, and Oasis ranks among the best-selling rock bands of their era. They have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and currently have 20 million monthly listeners on Spotify, a solid showing for a rock band of their vintage. “Wonderwall” alone has 1.8 billion streams on the platform, making it one of the most popular rock songs by that metric ever. Voters who care about that sort of thing — and it seems like many of them do — will see this as a huge plus.
No. 2, Oasis has remained relevant for younger generations. Contemporary rock stars regard them as an archetype for a bygone era of coolness that nobody now seems equipped or even interested in emulating. They have aged into being a classic rock band without diminishing their “working class cocaine freaks” mystique. If they reunited next week, they would likely play arenas in the United States and stadiums in Europe. Voters will care about that, too.
No. 3, in terms of the historical “museum” aspect of the Rock Hall, Oasis are an important part of the British rock lineage. A case could be made that, along with Radiohead, they are the most important British rock band that didn’t originate in the ’60s or the ’70s. Certainly, it’s hard to argue against Oasis being the link between The Smiths (who are not in the Rock Hall and maybe won’t ever make it?) in the ’80s and Coldplay (who I suspect will eventually make it, probably?) in the ’00s. (Admittedly, voters might not care about this.)
No. 4, perhaps most crucially, there aren’t any slam dunks on the ballot this year. Mariah Carey and Sade seem like near-locks, but I don’t think there is any single act that on paper looks like a unanimous “must vote” choice like Tina Turner was a few years ago. That could open up a lane for Oasis to sail on through.
Seems like a strong case, no? Not so fast, Brianna. Let’s talk about what Oasis has going against them.
No. 1, there’s a common perception about Oasis that they put out two great albums in the mid-’90s and then fell off a Grand Canyon-sized cliff. Now, I happen to think that’s wrong, but I’m keeping my opinion out of it for the moment. Less-educated voters — which is a sizable voting bloc, I’m afraid — might even classify Oasis as one-hit wonders based on how “Wonderwall” towers over the Oasis catalog in the public consciousness. This might cause some to think that Oasis doesn’t have the resumé to deserve induction.
No. 2, the Rock Hall has a very weird bias against alt and indie-leaning rock bands. This is an under-discussed blind spot for the institution, because the focus (deservedly) has been on the lack of representation for women and artists of color. But the fight to fix gender and racial prejudice shouldn’t completely overwhelm the still-prevalent generational prejudice that hampers the Rock Hall. This year, Peter Frampton and Foreigner are nominated, two just-okay classic-rock acts that were never considered the best or even the most popular acts of their era. (Frampton Comes Alive! sold tons of copies, but so did a lot of other live records in the mid-’70s.) This falls in line with the ongoing trend of nominating B and C-tier artists from the ’60s, ’70s, and early ’80s rather than honoring A-listers from later eras.
I’ve banged on this before but it’s worth doing it again. Consider that not one band written about in Michael Azerrad’s definitive tome about ’80s indie rock, Our Band Could Be Your Life, is in the Rock Hall. Not a single one! That’s 13 bands: Black Flag, Minutemen, Mission Of Burma, Minor Threat, Hüsker Dü, The Replacements, Sonic Youth, Butthole Surfers, Big Black, Dinosaur Jr., Fugazi, Mudhoney, and Beat Happening. All nada, zip, nope.
It gets worse! For the ’90s, here’s a partial list of very successful and/or critically acclaimed alt-rock acts not in the Rock Hall: Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, Fiona Apple, Hole, Blink-182, Blur, Ween, Tori Amos, Stone Temple Pilots, and Tool. On the indie side, there’s Pavement, PJ Harvey, Björk, Fugazi, Wilco, Liz Phair, Guided By Voices, Modest Mouse, Sunny Day Real Estate, Flaming Lips, Built To Spill, and Yo La Tengo.
The worst part of this mass-snubbing is that it’s self-perpetuating. Even for people who like voting for rock bands, there seems to be a tendency to not vote for a new nominee because “X band that preceded them” is not already in. For Oasis, this might mean a voter doesn’t cast their ballot because The Jam or The Stone Roses (or The Smiths!) haven’t already been inducted. That kind of thinking is fine in a vacuum, but it ultimately keeps rock bands out of the Rock Hall. And it’s a very real problem for Oasis’ chances.
To sum up: Oasis is a very successful band that people still care about! But the Rock Hall still seems only fitfully interested in rock bands that started their careers after 1983! Good and evil are evenly matched in this arena!
So, what’s my verdict? I’m going to say that Oasis will make it, but it will be closer than it should be. Take that, bumbaclarts!
Otherwise, he’s a total mystery. Even that third item comes with a “reportedly.” According to TMZ, Evans “was among many recognizable faces out and about in Vegas during Super Bowl weekend — but many people noticed he was hanging out a ton with Melissa Stratton… who’s a bona fide adult film star, cam girl, and model. And yes, she does explicit content.”
Here’s more:
Melissa had been posting a ton of photos of her and Sean all weekend across various social platforms of hers — and in a lot of them… they look awfully cozy… almost couple-y, in fact. Her captions also suggested there may be some romance afoot — even though there wasn’t any straight-up PDA shown between them in any of the pics she posted.
Melissa Stratton is also a big Kansas City Chiefs fan, which explains why they were at the game. Well, that, and Evans is hopefully trying to book Chiefs coach Andy Reid for Hot Ones. Unlike recent guest Sydney Sweeney, he could take down Da Bomb, no problem.
No Beyoncé era arrives without its controversy, and her latest is no different. This past Sunday (February 11), Bey kicked off the era of her new album, Act II, which, given the sounds of the pair of singles “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em,” sounds like it will be a country album. Still, at least one country station was seemingly reluctant to play the new songs.
Yesterday (February 13), an X (formerly Twitter) user shared a note from an Oklahoma-based radio station on social media. The note was a response to a request to play “Texas Hold ‘Em,” which read, “We do not play Beyoncé on KYKC as we are a country music station.”
However, Entertainment Weekly has now reported that KYKC has added both “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages” to its rotation. According to Entertainment Weekly, a representative from the station’s parent company, S.C.O.R.E., said that station manager Roger Harris “was removed and didn’t know otherwise” that Beyoncé had shared new country music.
Harris in an email to EW, “Up until now, she hasn’t been a ‘country artist.’ So..we responded to the email in the same way we would have responded to someone requesting a Rolling Stones song on our country station.”
KYKC themselves confirmed via X that Bey’s new music had been added to their docket, following an outpouring of requests from the Beyhive.
Lots of call coming in for Beyoncé’s Texas Hold ‘Em. It’s coming up in minutes pic.twitter.com/w9hZ24w4aw
The publication also notes that Columbia Records is now pushing “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages” to country radio.
Act II is out 3/29 via Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
