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    Oprah Winfrey to Salute Tina Turner at Clive Davis' Pre-Grammys Party

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    The former daytime talk show host is reportedly tapped to pay homage to the music icon at the upcoming star-studded event ahead of the Biggest Night in Music.

    Apr 7, 2021

    AceShowbiz –
    Oprah Winfrey will reportedly pay tribute to Tina Turner at Clive Davis’ Grammys party.

    The TV icon has been interviewed by the influential music producer for his upcoming celebration, and the duo took the opportunity to discuss the legacy of the 81-year-old singer.

    “He interviewed her for 90 minutes… it will, of course, be edited,” a source told the New York Post newspaper’s Page Six column. “It’s linked to one of his favourite Tina Turner performances, and there was quite a bit of discussion around Tina. Clive was very excited that he got Oprah. It’s a big deal. He was like, ‘Can you believe this?’ ”

    Rather than his usual Beverly Hilton Pre-Grammys party, Clive instead held a virtual star-studded bash in January (21) with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Gayle King, Alicia Keys, and Joni Mitchell joining in the fun.

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    He had to postpone the second edition after being diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy in February.

    At the time, his representative said, “He is in good spirits and looks forward to doing the second half of his pre-Grammy gala in May.”

    He has since recovered and while a specific date is yet to be confirmed, the event is still expected next month.

    “The names connected with ‘part two’ are going to be bigger, if not better (than the first),” the insider added.

    Tina has been plagued with a number of health issues in recent years, including kidney failure, and it was her husband Erwin Bach who stepped up to donate a kidney to her in 2017.

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    Alan Jackson Too Devastated by Family Tragedies to Make Music in Past Few Years

    WENN

    The ‘Remember When’ singer talks about his music hiatus, explaining that he couldn’t find motivation to make music following the deaths of his mother and son-in-law.

    Apr 7, 2021

    AceShowbiz –
    Country singer Alan Jackson lost the passion for making music after a string of family tragedies.

    The “Remember When” star is preparing to launch “Where Have You Gone” – his first album in six years – in May (21), and the project features three particularly personal tracks, including “Where Her Heart’s Always Been”, a song he originally wrote for his mother’s 2017 funeral.

    Jackson admits the long break between 2015’s “Angels and Alcohol” and his new material wasn’t planned, but he couldn’t bring himself to focus on his career after losing his mum and then his son-in-law, Ben Selecman, in a fall on a dock in September, 2018 – less than a year after marrying the musician’s eldest daughter, Mattie.

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    In a statement about “Where Have You Gone” upcoming release, Jackson explains the heartache prompted him to shelve the album he had been working on at the time of the double deaths, because he simply “didn’t really feel like making music for a couple years.”

    Jackson eventually picked up the pen again and started reminiscing about his youth in Georgia, which inspired much of “Where Have You Gone”, reports Taste of Country.

    “When I write, I visualise back home and growing up,” he explained. “I say this: ‘Real country songs are life and love and heartache, drinking and Mama and having a good time…’ But it’s the sound of the instruments, too. The steel and acoustic guitar, the fiddle, those things have a sound and a tone – and getting that right, the way those things make you feel, that’s country, too.”

    The album will also include the tunes “I Do” and “You’ll Always Be My Baby”, which he wrote for his daughters’ weddings.

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    Lizzo Teases Potential Duets With Harry Styles and Rihanna

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    The ‘Juice’ hitmaker hints at an upcoming collaboration with the One Direction member and plans to reach out to the Fenty Beauty mogul for another duet.

    Apr 7, 2021

    AceShowbiz –
    Lizzo has teased potential collaborations with Harry Styles and Rihanna.

    The “Good as Hell” hitmaker revealed she was planning to phone the “Golden” hitmaker – who she has become great pals with – over the weekend to plan a duet with the 27-year-old pop star.

    She told fans on Instagram Live, “New music is motherf**king coming. Are you and Harry going to collab? I have a collab with him this weekend. I’m going to call him.”

    The “Truth Hurts” hitmaker also has a song she has written for her and the “Work” hitmaker that she wants to try and get the 33-year-old Bajan superstar to lay down her vocals on.

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    “Rihanna is busy but you know what is crazy?” she continued. “I have been wanting to hit her up. I’m scared, though. I’ma just DM her and say, ‘Hey, I’ve got a song for us.’ I do have a song. I might just do it.”

    The 32-year-old Grammy-winner also teased that her follow-up to her acclaimed 2019 LP “Cuz I Love You” will be “very uplifting, fun and necessary.”

    “This music is going to be very uplifting, very fun and very necessary,” she smiled. “I am making the music that I need to hear after the year we’ve had.”

    Last year, Lizzo linked up with Rihanna as she modeled for Savage x Fenty Vol 2. show.

    The show featured a long list of supermodels, singers, and TV personalities, including singer Rosalia, drag queen Shea Coulee, and models Miss 5th Ave, Irina Shayk, hotel heiress Paris Hilton, and artists like Miguel, Bad Bunny, and Ella Mai.

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    Neil Diamond’s ‘A Beautiful Noise’ Musical to Open in Boston in 2022

    “A Beautiful Noise,” featuring songs from the hit-maker’s deep catalog, will play a monthlong run in Boston in 2022, with New York planned next.A musical featuring the songs — and telling the life story — of Neil Diamond now has a title, a choreographer and scheduled performance dates in Boston, with Broadway plans next.“A Beautiful Noise,” named as a nod to the singer-songwriter’s 1976 album, is set to run for four weeks at the Emerson Colonial Theater in Boston next summer, the show’s producers, Ken Davenport and Bob Gaudio, announced on Tuesday. They plan to bring the production to New York following that run.“I personally hope that this announcement demonstrates to the world that the Broadway factory is starting to come back to life, that there is smoke coming from our chimneys,” Davenport said in an interview on Tuesday. “We’re starting to make stuff again — we may not be able to show it to everyone right now, but we will.”The show, first announced in 2019, has put together a marquee team: The director is Michael Mayer, who won a Tony Award in 2007 for “Spring Awakening.” Steven Hoggett, whose work has been featured in “Once” and “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” will supply movement and dance. Anthony McCarten, the Oscar-nominated screenwriter behind “The Theory of Everything” and “Bohemian Rhapsody,” is writing the book.“A Beautiful Noise” will cover the ups and downs of Diamond’s life, from growing up poor in Brooklyn through his rise to stardom in the ’70s (thanks to hits like “Cracklin’ Rosie” and “Song Sung Blue”) and into the later decades of his career, when he became something of a living legend. In this respect, it promises to be similar to the shows about Tina Turner and Donna Summer that appeared on Broadway recently.Asked whether theater fans would still have an appetite for jukebox musicals after the pandemic-enforced Broadway hiatus, Davenport (a Tony winner for the 2018 revival of “Once on This Island”) said that “A Beautiful Noise” shouldn’t be pre-emptively pigeonholed.“I characterize it as a biographical musical drama and not a jukebox musical,” he said. “We’re excited to show people what separates it from some of the jukebox musicals that have been around.”In a statement, Diamond, who is now 80, said he thinks the opening of the show will be similar to performing his song “Sweet Caroline” at Fenway Park after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, an experience he called “a moment of relief, unity, strength and love.”When performances begin in June 2022 “and we’re all able to safely be in the same space together, experiencing the thrill of live theater, I imagine those same emotions will wash over me and the entire audience,” he said.The Boston area has lately been a popular proving ground for Broadway-bound musicals, including “Jagged Little Pill,” which opened at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge in May 2018, and “Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” which received its world premiere at the Emerson Colonial that July. Both were enjoying successful New York runs when the pandemic suspended live theater, and are up for numerous Tonys, including best musical.Casting details and ticketing information for “A Beautiful Noise” will be released later. More

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    YG's 'My Krazy Life' Removed From Streaming Platforms Amid Backlash Over Anti-Asian Lyrics

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    While YouTube took almost a week before removing ‘Meet the Flockers’ music video, Spotify, Apple Music and more have removed the rapper’s debut album which contains the controversial song.

    Apr 6, 2021

    AceShowbiz –
    YG’s album “My Krazy Life” has disappeared from digital streaming platforms amid criticism over his song “Meet the Flockers” anti-Asian lyrics. The whole record, which includes the controversial song, can no longer be found on major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, the iTunes Store and YouTube, so Genius notes.

    The standard edition and several deluxe editions of “My Krazy Life”, however, are still available to stream on TIDAL as of press time. All of the editions include “Meet the Flockers”.

    “My Krazy Life” is YG’s debut studio album which was released in 2014. Aside from the controversial song, it spawned four singles, “My N***a”, “Left, Right”, “Who Do You Love?” and “Do It to Ya”. “My N***a” peaked at number 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and was certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

    “Meet the Flockers” itself has faced criticism in the past for its lyrics about targeting “Chinese neighborhoods” during burglary attempts. The backlash was recently reignited following the rise of anti-Asian violence.

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    Last week, it was reported that employees at YouTube called for the song’s removal from the site. The request to YouTube’s Trust & Safety team, however, was denied in an email from executives to the staff on March 22.

    “We’ll start by saying we find this video to be highly offensive and understand it is painful for many to watch, including many in Trust & Safety and especially given the ongoing violence against the Asian community,” read the email. “One of the biggest challenges of working in Trust & Safety is that sometimes we have to leave up content we disagree with or find offensive.”

    The email noted that the song’s lyrics violated the company’s hate speech policy, but said “Meet the Flockers” would stay up because of an Educational, Documentary, Scientific or Artistic exception, citing the its “artistic context” and noting concern about setting a precedent that would lead to the removal of more music videos.

    It’s not until almost a week later that YouTube decided to remove the music video for “Meet the Flockers” from its site.

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    Queen Naija Fires Back at Haters in the Wake of Criticism Over Ari Lennox Collab

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    While some RnB fans are excited for the new song, some others are not into the idea of Queen enlisting a female artist with darker skin for her project considering her past offensive comments.

    Apr 6, 2021

    AceShowbiz –
    Queen Naija has responded to backlash that she faces after announcing her collaboration with Ari Lennox for “Set Him Up”. The rapper took to her Twitter account to clap back at her critics who were not happy with the fact that she teamed with the “Whipped Cream” singer for her track, which will be released on April 7.

    “lol the fact that people think they can get ‘rid’ of me or take me off my own song is ridiculous,” Naija wrote on Twitter on Sunday, April 4. “I don’t want nor need y’all’s validation to continue to win! whatever y’all say about or to me cannot stop my blessings. The ratio of people who love me outweighs the hate!”

    While some R&B fans were excited for the new song, some others were not into the idea of Queen enlisting a female artist with darker skin for her project considering her past offensive comments. “Queen naija out here collaborating with darkskin artists to cover the fact that she used to called them dark melon munchers…got her tea…,” one person wrote on Twitter.

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    “Never forget that Queen Naija told a black woman to take a bleach bath right after being accused of being colorist due to her ‘Lil black girls with terrible hairstyles’ comment and then deleted. I will never support her…she’s an industry plant anyways,” another person said. “Somebody tell me the time stamp of Queen Naija’s verse on Ari’s song so i can SKIP it. It would make me veddi veddi happy,” a user commented.

    The hate comments that Queen got stemmed from her controversial remarks in a video back in 2017. In the said video, the YouTube star complained about being bullied when she was a child. She described her bullies as “black,” “ugly” and “nappy-headed little girls.” Queen has addressed the video several times with the latest being in 2020.

    “I have never been a colorist. I have never felt that I was better because I was light-skinned,” she said in an Instagram video back in August. “I feel like melanin’s beautiful… The words I have used in the past, they were probably ignorant. Not probably. They were ignorant. Back then, I didn’t know they were ignorant because that’s what I was just used to. I wasn’t that educated on my culture and wasn’t deeply rooted into it.”

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    ACM Awards 2021: Kelsea Ballerini, Maren Morris and Luke Bryan Unveiled as Performers

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    Also among the 25 artists invited to take the stage at the 56th Annual ACM Awards in Nashville, Tennessee are Thomas Rhett, Dierks Bentley, Kane Brown, Luke Combs, and Miranda Lambert.

    Apr 6, 2021

    AceShowbiz –
    Kelsea Ballerini, Maren Morris, Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan are among the list of performers set to appear at the 2021 Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM) Awards in April.

    The country music superstars will be among the 25 artists invited to take the stage at the 56th Annual ACM Awards set to take place in Nashville, Tennessee, on April 18.

    The star-studded slate of performers includes Dierks Bentley, Lee Brice, Brothers Osborne, Kane Brown, and Kenny Chesney. Also joining them as performers are Eric Church, Luke Combs, Dan + Shay, Mickey Guyton, Ryan Hurd, Jack Ingram, Alan Jackson, Elle King, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Ashley McBryde, and Morris.

    Morris and Stapleton lead the pack with six nominations each, with Lambert close behind with five nominations and McBryde and Rhett earning four nods each.

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    Meanwhile, Carly Pearce, Jon Randall, Thomas Rhett, Blake Shelton, Chris Stapleton, The War and Treaty, Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, CeCe Winans and Chris Young round out the performer list.

    Four black artists making history at the ACMs for being nominated for the awards for the first time this year are Jimmie Allen, Brown, Guyton and John Legend, who is a first-time nominee. And every song nominated for single of the year features a woman.

    Like last year, the 2021 ACM Awards will be broadcast from three different locations in Nashville: the Grand Ole Opry House, the Ryman Auditorium and the Bluebird Cafe.

    Urban and Guyton were revealed as co-hosts for the awards show last month (March 2021). The awards show will be aired live from 8 P.M. ET on CBS. It will be streamed live and on demand with Paramount+.

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    Lil Nas X Declares 'He's Still Here' After Toping Billboard Hot 100 With 'Montero'

    The success of ‘Montero (Call Me by Your Name)’ comes exactly two years since the young rapper released his record-breaking country crossover hit ‘Old Town Road’.

    Apr 6, 2021

    AceShowbiz –
    Lil Nas X has scored another TransAtlantic double after topping the Billboard Hot 100 with “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”.

    The track hit the top of the U.K. charts on Friday, April 2 and now the rapper’s new tune has shot to the top of the North American singles countdown.

    The success comes exactly two years since he released his record-breaking country crossover hit “Old Town Road”.

    “Y’all told a 19 year old who had just escaped the lowest point of his life that he would never have a hit again,” he tweeted. “you told him to stop while he’s ahead. he could’ve gave up. But 4 multi platinum songs and 2 #1’s later, he’s still here. thank you to my team and my fans! [sic]”.

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    In a separate Instagram post, Nas, real name Montero Lamar Hill, recalled feeling sorry for himself just before he started working with Montero co-writers and producers Take a Daytrip, Omer Fedi, and Roy Lenzo in 2020, crying in the studio.

    “i was sitting in my apartment thinking it was all over for me,” he wrote. “i was trying so hard to be perfect, to please everyone, and not make any enemies. that stifled me creatively. i felt so sorry for myself. but around this time in 2020 i pulled it together, me, daytrip, omer, & roy, worked for months on end.”

    “One day in june i was working on a song and found myself leaving the studio every 10 minutes to cry. but i didn’t stop working, a melody came to my mind. ‘call me when u want na-na-na-na na’, and i knew it was something special about it, fast forward a year later it’s the biggest song in the world. thank you guys so much. we get to decide OUR own destiny, never let the world decide it for YOU! i love you! [sic]”.

    The song has also debuted at number two on Billboard’s Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. charts, behind Justin Bieber’s “Peaches”, which “Montero” unseats to become America’s number one.

    “Peaches”, featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon, drops to two, while Silk Sonic’s “Leave the Door Open” holds at three.

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