Rihanna has dropped her first new music in six years. “Lift Me Up” is an actual song, and it’s the theme from “Wakanda Forever.” Four writers are credited, and the song was recorded in five countries–ridiculous. But it’s an actual song, it’s original, and has a melody. That’s very unique these days. An instant hit, and a definite Best Song nominee for the 2023 Oscars.
Harry Styles Flounders in Odd Choice for New Video as a Piece of Sushi Based on a Not-Actual Song
The new video from Harry Styles is based on a song that features little singing and a lot of horns.
Harry flounders as a piece of live sushi in “Music from a Sushi Restaurant.” The video will be a hit but radio won’t welcome this as the third single from “Harry’s House.” It’s a weird choice to say the least. But maybe Harry’s counting on fans wanting to watch him this way. Very fishy.
Kanye West’s Private School for Children Closes Abruptly, Not Unlike Will Smith’s Former School
Here’s a lesson for everyone: do not send your kids to wonky private schools created by celebrities.
The London Times reports that Kanye West’s Donda Academy has shut down abruptly. The school is in Los Angeles’s Simi Valley and costs $15,000 a year. The Donda Academy was famous making its students sing praise to Kanye’s dead mother every morning at assembly.
When West’s antisemitism scandal broke two weeks ago the head of the school quit. Since the parents are bound by NDA’s they haven’t spoken, but without administrators and possibly teachers the school had to shut down. The remaining administrator says they’ll be back in September 2023, but I doubt it. By then Kanye will be absolutely broke and this school will be a distant memory.
For the parents, though, this has to be a nightmare– switching schools after two months into the new year. Any parents who want to talk to me in confidence, please email me at showbiz411@gmail.com.
This situation is not unlike how Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s neo-Scientology school, New Village Academy, shut down in 2012. That school actually made it for three or four years before the whole thing collapsed in educational rubble.
Meantime, West — instead of apologizing or demonstrating contrition, has been mocking his critics over the last several hours on social media. Also, he tried to visit the Skechers headquarters yesterday to try and replace Adidas after they bailed on him. They very publicly kicked him out. Kanye is in a free fall now, having lost most of his income in one day.
NYC’s Stunning David Geffen Hall Opens with All Star Show Including Alicia Keys, “Hamilton,” Sara Bareilles, with Geffen, Barry Diller, Chuck Schumer, Mayor Adams in Attendance
It was a throwback night of celebration in New York tonight as Lincoln Center opened its stunning new David Geffen Hall with an A list party and performance.
First– most importantly — the former Avery Fisher Hall is a total success. The sound in the theater is finally acoustically perfect, a dramatic change since the original Philharmonic Hall opened in 1962. Leonard Bernstein is cheering in heaven at the sleek new design of blonde Scandinavian wood. You feel like you’re on the most expensive Norwegian cruise of all time now that hundreds of seats have been removed. Geffen Hall is now an intimate experience for a massive crowd. The sound imaging is sheer perfection.
We learned that right from the start as conductor Jaap van Zweden led the Philharmonic through two opening pieces that showed the depth and breadth of the new room. For classic enthusiasts the room burst with color and emotion. For people who’ve become accustomed to ear buds, this will literally blow their minds. It’s heaven.
Sting’s long time conductor, Emmy winner and Tony and Grammy nominated Rob Mathes, took over at that point as a parade of New York’s finest artists took the stage. (I was only sorry that Tony Bennett couldn’t be there. This would have been his personal Super Bowl.) Alicia Keys surprised the well-heeled audience of celebs and donors, opening the show with her “Empire State of Mind,” sending shivers through the room. As the evening progressed, Bernadette Peters, Sara Bareilles and Brandon Victor Dixon, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Vanessa Williams, Renee Fleming, and Tony winner Joaquina Kalukango wowed the crowd with cheers and ovations as they covered Broadway, jazz, the American songbook, their superb voices rising over Mathes’s bravura conducting of the symphony.
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The pièce de résistance? A symphonized medley of songs from “Hamilton” led by Lin Manuel Miranda and featuring Ta Real Campbell and Nik Walker. Mathes told me later he wrote all new charts for “Hamilton” turning the award winning rap musical into symphonic orchestrations. It’s a credit to Miranda that his already famous music transferred so easily and beautifully into another realm. Someone’s going to get the idea to make “Hamilton” into a symphony after this!
In the audience was none other than Mayor Eric Adams in a purplish maroon suit, as well as Senator Chuck Schumer, Jamie Bernstein (daughter of the great composer/conductor Leonard), Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg (very cute holding hands), CAA co-chief Bryan Lourd (whose daughter Billie steals “Ticket to Paradise”) and Bruce Bozzi, Martha Stewart, actress Kate Burton, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft with his new wife Dr. Dana Blumberg), famed music attorney Allen Grubman and his superstar realtor wife Deborah, philanthropist Mercedes Bass and movie PR maven Peggy Siegal, film producer Jon Kamen — his company, Radical Media, made the opening film with Nathan Lane (directed by Alex Horwitz)– and of course, David Geffen himself.
Geffen had asked that no one make a fuss over him, but when the famed music producer/Broadway producer/film producer was introduced the place went wild. He’s literally dragged the NY Phil into the 21st century and couldn’t have done a better job. Stephen Colbert, also making a surprise appearance, joked from the stage that since Geffen had also been a founder of Dreamworks Films, some of the money Geffen donated came from one of their animated films, “Captain Underpants.” I don’t know if Geffen liked that. After all, Dreamworks also gave us “Saving Private Ryan,” “American Beauty,” and “A Brilliant Mind.”
And yes, the new Geffen Hall’s main entrance is a glistening glass garage door. The whole lobby has been updated along with all the levels leading into the theater. If you want a grand old theater, we still have Carnegie Hall and two dozen or more Broadway houses covered in gold paint. But Geffen Hall is a signature for the future. It’s modern but undeniably warm. And it’s opened two years earlier than expected, under budget. As the Philharmonic Chorus sang to open the evening, “Hallelujah!”
PS I hope they taped the evening. Among my favorite moments were Bareilles and Dixon’s duet on “I Can Do Anything Better than You,” and Fleming and Stokes Mitchell taking on “Make Our Garden Grow” from “Candide.”
Rihanna Is Back with New Song for “Wakanda Forever” by 4 Writers, Recorded in 5 Countries
You know, I love Rihanna’s voice. So the amusing facts of her first single in six years I won’t make fun of.
But still: it took at least four people to write “Lift Me Up” for the “Wakanda Forever” soundtrack. The press release says it was recorded in no less than FIVE countries. Come on. Was one of those countries Wakanda itself?
Anyway the song is coming tomorrow night at midnight. The people getting publishing credits are Tems, Oscar winner Ludwig Göransson, Rihanna and “wakanda Forever” director Ryan Coogler. The song is a tribute to Chadwick Boseman, who tragically died two years ago. His T’Challa character is killed off in the movie.
Who is Tems? She’s a Nigerian born singer songwriter named Temilade Openiyi. She actually wrote the song, I guess. Everyone else jumped on. I like her: we share a birthday. Go, Tems!
Kanye West Fallout: One Producer Worries About Shrinking Royalties, the Other Makes Donations to ADL, NAACP
Kanye West losing his recording contract and other businesses is bringing out comments from his associates. I told you in my last post that NFL linebacker Antonio Brown is sticking with West as the head of his moot Donda Sports.
Kanye has a lot of musicians, engineers, and producers who work for him assembling his albums. Presumably, their business is shot now. So how are they taking it?
One long time producer, Andrew Dawson, is a mensch. He wrote on social media that he’s making donations to the Anti-Defamation League, the NAACP, and other civil rights organizations.
Mike Dean, another of West’s long time producers, the guy who actually writes the “music” that shows up in Kanye constructions, has a different view. He’s worried that he’s going to lose his income stream.
Dean reponded to Dawson with this observation:
“Careful tho. Those royalties will shrink. Sucks. He’s hurting all his collaborators too”
Good to see everyone has their priorities straight!
Kanye West’s Most Loyal Supporter, Former NFL Receiver Antonio Brown, Ordered to Pay $1.2 Million in Assault Case
Kanye West’s most ardent supporter — and most clueless — former NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown.
According to reports, Brown — who’s no longer playing but has been with four different NFL teams — has just been ordered to pay $1.2 million in a judgement for an assault case. Brown and his trainer allegedly attacked a moving man in Broward County, Florida in 2020. A jury found Brown liable for $407,000 to cover Anton Tumanov’s past and future medical expenses and $793,000 for past and future pain and suffering. Brown never showed up for any of the court hearings. The alleged assault on Tumanov was instigated when Brown wouldn’t pay him $4,000.
The same Antonio Brown is president of Kanye West’s Donda Sports, an agency for athletes. Today both of the clients of Donda Sports — Aaron Donald and Jaylen Brown — left the agency. But npt Antonio Brown – he’s issued a statement supporting West despite all the companies and people who have publicly denounced West for antisemitism. Adidas, The Gap, Universal Music are all gone, but Antonio Brown is staying! He’s standing by freedom of hate speech!
Too many hits to the head for Antonio Brown? Apparently so. Good for him. He’s willing to go down with the ship. And he shall.
LOL The People’s Choice Awards Nominations Are Here, and They are Hilarious
The People’s Choice Awards are back! This is the exact bottom of the awards barrel. This year’s nominees are completely hilarious. Look at their main category, The Drama Movie of 2022. In what bizarro alternative universe does this take place? Of all these nominees, only “Elvis” would stand a chance to be in a real awards show. The rest, I mean, oy gevalt. I’m actually shocked they didn’t include “Top Gun Maverick.”
Anyway, pay no attention to this miserable carnival. All the winners are arranged in advance and it’s shown live on NBC (wow they are desperate to fill time) and the E! channel on December 6th. I’m hopeful that “Halloween Ends” wins this category.
THE DRAMA MOVIE OF 2022
Nope
Death on the Nile
Don’t Worry Darling
Elvis
Halloween Ends
Luckiest Girl Alive
Scream
Where the Crawdads Sing
Feud Karma: Kanye West Loses a Billion Dollars Same Week Taylor Swift Sells a Million Albums, After 13 Years of War
In the next couple of weeks, Ryan Murphy starts shooting his second “Feud” mini series, about Truman Capote falling out with his rich lady friends after he exposed their secrets.
But Murphy’s next “Feud” series could be about Kanye West, a more evil version of Capote who’s burned all his bridges in the last week.
This week, West has lost over a billion dollars after doubling and tripling down on hate speech against Jews. His antisemitic rhetoric has cost him his livelihood for now as all the companies he’s in business with him have severed those relationships.
Ironically, this very same week, his once arch nemesis, Taylor Swift, is on top of the world. By Friday morning she will have sold over 1 million copies of her new album, “Midnights.” It’s the biggest release of 2022.
In 2009, West and Swift became mortal enemies when West jumped up on the stage of the MTV Video Music Awards and interrupted Swift’s acceptance speech for Best Female Video. He announced that Beyonce had had the best video, and ruined Swift’s moment. The feud was launched.
Six years later, in 2015, Swift was persuaded to present West with a lifetime achievement award from MTV. She did it in good form. West responded by saying in his acceptance speech that she only did it for publicity.
The feud continued until West filmed himself making a call to Swift to her permission to rap a line about her in a new song. The line was about her owing him sex after everything they’d been through, She reacted calmly, but the subsequent fallout from the song and a from a video in which he used a wax figure of Swift, only made things worse.
And now 13 years of feuding, of causing other people pain, of creating and losing a family, has led to this ironic week. Swift is on the up, up, and up and West is pretty much destroyed. Even claiming that his bipolar condition made him say and do everything won’t fly this time. Swift, however, will be counting royalty checks and bathing in the light of a super success.
What a weird juxtaposition.
Luckily, a YouTuber has made a video history of their relationship. I’m glad I found it.
Statement from Universal Music about Kanye West: Deal Over, “No Place for Antisemitism in Our Society”
Universal Music’s Def Jam has just sent this announcement. Their relationship with Kanye West is over.
It doesn’t matter much. West’s record sales and streaming numbers have completely bottomed out in the last week. All of last week he averaged 10,0000 “copies” a day of albums. This week, the numbers are around 100.
Here’s the statement:
“Def Jam’s relationship with Ye as a recording artists, its partnership with the GOOD Music label venture and Ye’s merchandise agreement with Bravado all ended in 2021.
“There is no place for antisemitism in our society. We are deeply committed to combating antisemitism and every other form of prejudice.”
CLICK HERE FOR EVERYTHING ABOUT KANYE WEST, ADIDAS, AND HIS SCANDAL