Brooks & Dunn, the lauded country duo who called it quits in 2010, are reuniting for an organization that awarded them 27 trophies over the course of their 20-year career together. Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, who pursued solo careers after their Last Rodeo tour wrapped nearly five years ago, will be among the performers at next month’s 50th ACM Awards at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Their stage reunion comes just ahead of the first dates of their Together in Vegas residency with Reba McEntire, which begins in June at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
Also just announced for the ACM’s golden-anniversary celebration are a special duet by The Voice coach Christina Aguilera with surprise artists; the teaming of pop star Nick Jonas with country duo Dan + Shay; and performances by Alan Jackson, Martina McBride, Brad Paisley, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town and Rascal Flatts.
That latest slate of performers joins previously announced artists Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley, Garth Brooks, Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Miranda Lambert, Reba, Blake Shelton, George Strait, Keith Urban and Florida Georgia Line, along with ACM New Artist of the Year nominees Sam Hunt, Thomas Rhett and Cole Swindell.
The star-studded awards show will follow the two-day ACM Party for a Cause Festival, April 17th and 18th at Arlington’s Globe Life Park, where Bryan, Lambert, Chesney and Florida Georgia Line join Alabama, Clint Black and Patty Loveless among the acts on the bill. The outdoor music festival will be taped for a two-hour special, ACM Presents: Superstar Duets!, which airs May 15th on CBS. Also on April 17th will be the “One Night, Two Cities, All Music” charity event, hosted by Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood and featuring Lady Antebellum, Keith Urban, Hunter Hayes and Little Big Town. Organized by ACM Lifting Lives, the philanthropic arm of the Academy of Country Music, proceeds from the two simultaneous concerts will be donated to several Texas-based organizations including Garth Brooks’ charity, Teammates for Kids, along with the Child Life Zones in Children’s Health of Dallas and Cook Children’s of Fort Worth.
Co-hosted by Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton, the 50th ACM Awards will be broadcast live from Arlington, Texas, Sunday, April 19th at 8:00 p.m. ET on CBS.
In 1973, just four years after Woodstock, the most iconic American music festival of its kind, country star Willie Nelson hosted his first-ever Fourth of July Picnic in Dripping Springs, Texas, just outside the state’s capital city of Austin. In 2015, for the first time in five years, the Independence Day event returns to Austin with Willie Nelson and Family joined by performers Eric Church, Kacey Musgraves, Merle Haggard, Sturgill Simpson, Jamey Johnson, Jason Isbell, Leon Russell, Billy Joe Shaver, Chris Stapleton, Ray Wylie Hubbard and Willie’s sons Lukas Nelson and Micah Nelson, and their respective bands.
"I got the idea from Woodstock about how music could bring people from different places together," the 81-year-old says in a statement. "I had just moved to Austin and had come to realize what a great music center it was and could be. I thought it would be a nice idea to this year have it back in Austin."
Tickets for the Fourth of July Picnic, which will take place on two stages at the Austin360 Amphitheater, go on sale Sunday, April 10th, with prices ranging from $35 to $75.
In 2014, Dierks Bentley, Charley Pride, Ryan Bingham and David Allan Coe (who will perform again this year) were among the acts at the annual event, which was held at the Fort Worth Stockyards. The lineup for the first picnic, in 1973, included Nelson and two of his future bandmates in the Highwaymen, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson, along with Tom T. Hall, John Prine and Doug Sahm.
Haggard, who last performed at the Picnic in 2003, when it was staged in Spicewood, Texas, was in New Braunfels with Nelson on Saturday night for the last of a trio of co-headlining shows. Over three nights, the two Country Music Hall of Famers performed with their bands and also traded tunes with each other. The legendary pair will release their fourth duets album, Django & Jimmie, later this year.
Need more proof that Dolly Parton’s heart is as big as her hair? Find out the story about the country legend’s sweet duet with a young fan who has Down Syndrome….
After hearing about Gage Blackwell’s wish to meet his idol, one of Dolly’s business associates arranged a meeting between the two at a restaurant in her Dollywood theme park in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Not only did his idol tell Blackwell that she reminded him of a certain dear old friend of hers, they sang a medley of her biggest hits (“Islands In The Stream,” “Jolene,” “9 to 5,”) together!
Gage’s mother, Lynnae told TODAY.com that she was overwhelmed by the amount of love Dolly showed to her son, adding, ”as a mother, that was just an amazing moment, to see how happy she made him.”
Happy indeed! Gage summed up his reaction to the amazing day with this Facebook post.
Dwight Yoakam is well-known for not only his musical prowess (his latest album, Second Hand Heart, hits the streets April 14) but for his wide acting range, as evidenced by his equally successful film career. It may come as a surprise, however, that the talented singer/actor has a supreme sense of humor—even if he’s shown a dozen sides on screen.
Ram Country host Cornelia Rowe was able to get plenty of jokes out of Yoakam when he visited the studio recently for the Hot Country Minute — in which he kept everyone rolling with his jokes and wry takes on life. Here, he dishes on what he did with his first big paycheck, gives fashion advice for Billy Bob Thornton, and more.
(Photo by Neil H Kitson/Redferns via Getty Images)
by Chris Willman
LBT. LGBT. It’s not so hard to tell the difference. Or is it? And if it is, what of it?
These are the kinds of questions that come up in the wake of Little Big Town’s “Girl Crush” having kicked off the Great Country Homophobia Scare of 2015. Theirs is the first real country radio-related controversy to cross over and become a mainstream news media flashpoint since the Dixie Chicks got the boot from a dozen years ago. But in this case, the firestorm is turning out to be more of a glorified brush fire, and Little Big Town may yet get a belated hit song out of the brouhaha instead of a swift kick out the door.
So what lessons are there to be drawn here about media controversies (real or manufactured), heartland homophobia (perceived or actual), and the arguable fluidity of the definition of “crush”? And if the kerfuffle over “Girl Crush” is settling down, is it because we’re Past All That, or because country fans have been successfully assured that they can hold onto any biases they may hold and still love the tune?
As Chely Wright puts it: “Who knows if homophobia has anything to do with why ‘Girl Crush’ is stalling. I don’t know. But too many folks are hung up on defending the true meaning of the song rather than being outraged at the embarrassing mandate of so many country music radio listeners.”
As you may have heard, “Girl Crush” is not actually about a girl crush — which, in the common parlance, has always been understood to mean one straight gal having a platonic fixation on another. Rather, it’s a jealousy ballad in which the female singer doesn’t want to be with the object of the lyric but actually wants to be her, because she wishes she had Jessie’s guy, or words to that effect. The all-star songwriting team of Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, and Liz Rose pause to indulge in a provocative line or two (“I want to taste her lips, yeah, ‘cause they taste like you”), but in essence it’s as straight as anything Aaron Tippin ever recorded.
Yet, as the song performed modestly on the charts, there were whisperings that some listeners thought it was “I Kissed a Girl,” country redux, and that programmers were squashing it as a result. That suspicion seemed to be confirmed when an anonymous guest blogger claiming to be a Texas music director wrote a column for the website For the Country Record saying his station had been forced to lower “Girl Crush” from medium to low rotation because of complaints. “To my surprise,” he wrote, “after explaining the song to more than a handful of people, every one of them responded with basically the same thing (paraphrased): ‘You are just promoting the gay agenda on your station and I am changing the channel and never listening to you ever again!!’… I can understand the conservative viewpoint. I can understand the feeling of ‘Oh no they didn’t!!’ for the first couple lines of the song. What I don’t understand is not listening to the whole song and making a valid argument for your disapproval.”
(Photo by Ron Elkman /Sports Imagery/ Getty Images)
The resistance to the song was no longer strictly anonymous after the Washington Post quoted a Boise radio morning-show host as saying she got “furious” emails and phone calls and boycott threats because the song and station were “promoting the gay agenda.” Nationally syndicated radio host Bobby Bones tweeted out a message he’d gotten in response to his defense of the tune, with listener Jerry Aldini writing in: “You recently said that even if ‘Girl Crush’ was a song about lesbians it shouldn’t matter. It very much matters and you better get back in touch with the values and the people who listen to your show and buy country music… As the country slowly slides into hell, don’t give it another push.” Bones had LBT on his show and asked: “Is it frustrating to you that here is your song — that is one of the Top 10 sellers for weeks and weeks and weeks — and people on the radio are still afraid to play it because they think it’s a ‘lesbian song?’ It would drive me insane!”
A wider frenzy broke out Thursday. “Country music fans are OUTRAGED, but Little Big Town aren’t backing down,” trumpeted Entertainment Tonight. The headline in the Los Angeles Times Friday: “Little Big Town’s ‘Girl Crush’ rankles puritanical country radio.”
Then came the backlash to the backlash to the backlash. On Twitter, USA Today’s country music writer, Brian Mansfield, wrote that he was “beginning to think the legs this story has have more to do with people wanting to think country listeners are homophobic.” In response to the suggestion that “Girl Crush” was moving slowly on the charts because of programmer paranoia about listener reaction, Mansfield pointed to a history of Little Big Town ballads like “Sober” that fared far less well at radio than smashes like the No. 1 “Pontoon” and No. 2 “Day Drinking”: “They do high-risk, high-reward singles. Sometimes, they pay off big. Sometimes, they stall low.”
Billboard also circled the wagon around country radio’s reputation, with a Friday afternoon headline declaring the controversy over the “lesbian theme” was “mostly fabricated.” The industry trade quoted a program director from Bakersfield as saying, “Our research is showing our listeners want this song. We have the occasional caller that is pissed about it playing. The morning guys, Steve & Geoff, will put that call on the air and explain to them it is not a lesbian song, and what it is about, in a quick 30-, 45 second call that is pretty damn entertaining.”
But is doing a full-court press to convince country fans that “Girl Crush” has been vetted as 100 percent heterosexual a case of winning the battle and losing the war? Little Big Town’s label, Capitol Nashville, produced a commercial in which the band explains the content — not wholly unthinkable in a format that loves story-songs, but a pretty transparent move to head off wayward fantasies of lesbian agendas, in this instance. Even singer Karen Fairchild told Bones, “But what if it were [about] same-sex attraction?” — before adding, “It’s just a greater issue of listening to a song for what it is.” And thus a very understandable dance continues: But why should it matter if it were a gay-themed song? But don’t worry, it’s not!
Meanwhile, late Friday afternoon, For the Country Record reacted to Billboard's reaction to the anonymous commentary that set everything off. Billboard “implied our story was fabricated,” the site wrote. “I kept the OP’s anonymity because I… didn’t want his job to be threatened. But now our site’s credibility is being threatened… His name is Lee France. He is the music director for WACO 100 FM and KAGG-FM in Texas. Both are iHeartMedia stations.”
Nothing here leads to a simplistic conclusion. “Girl Crush” currently sits at No. 1 on the iTunes country chart. A result of the controversy? A little bit, but it was already hovering in the No. 4-5 range before the story blew up. The song also sits at a mere No. 32 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart.
An inexcusable disparity? Probably, but it’s not the first time a song blew up in digital track sales and was the talk of the country nation while radio took a cautionary approach. Think of, for example, Kacey Musgrave’s “Follow Your Arrow,” which… oh, yeah… mentions same-sex attraction.
Chely Wright — who came out five years ago, and is still the only female country hitmaker to do so (although she was recently joined on the male side by Ty Herndon) — gave Yahoo her perspective on the flap.
"If we’re talking about real analysis and a barometer that measures how well country music is doing in terms of the equality moment or its level of homophobia, I’d say this: It’s well-established and recognized that our nation is just about evenly divided on LGBT issues — 50/50, legislatively, and the ‘hearts and minds’ facet too," Wright says. "So why anyone would assume that country music fans would fare better, statistically, than the rest of America is sort of naive to me, don’t you think? Our industry plays to its base, just like politicians play to their base. It’s business. Country music is known to have a largely conservative audience. Music Row knows it and country radio knows it. There are progressive folks in our industry and they know who they are. Our country has quite a ways to go in terms of LGBT equality… and so does our country music."
As for “Girl Crush,” you can consider it a thoroughly un-socially conscious jealousy song, or an accidental political barometer. It’s a song that, dare we say it, swings both ways.
She may now be one of the biggest – if not THE biggest – pop star in music these days, but good ole’ Taylor Swift hasn’t forgotten her country roots.
Last night in Nashville, she made a surprise appearance at Kenny Chesney’s tour kick-off concert! As you can see here in this video posted on YouTube, Taylor joined Kenny on stage for his song ‘Big Star’ and even pulled up a young fan to join them.
Also making cameos at the show? Grace Potter and Uncle Kracker, among others.
But one of the most buzzed-about guests at the gig? DJ Calvin Harris, who’s been photographed this week hanging around Nashville with Taylor. Fans were posting photos of the two as they watched Kenny’s show together from the audience.
Perhaps he’ll accompany her next month to the 50th annual Academy of Country Music awards in Dallas? Taylor is being honored along with Garth Brooks, Miranda Lambert, George Strait, Reba McEntire, Brooks and Dunn AND Kenny Chesney with the 50thAnniversary Milestone Award for their achievements in advancing country music.
So like we said before, she may be a global pop superstar now – but she’ll always have a special place in Nashville and country music.
One-half of what is arguably the most powerful couple in country music is all about that ranch. When you are the mega-power couple that Miranda Lambert and hubby Blake Shelton are, you need some time away from the madding crowds, be they in Nashville or elsewhere. For native Texan Lambert, that’s meant digging deep roots in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, the town where she and her “The Voice” coach husband live.
"The first thing I did when I started being successful in music was buy my own farm," she told Food and Wine magazine.
Tishomingo, which had a population of just more than 3,000 people at the last census, has become the heart of Lambert’s ranch lifestyle. She told Cowboys and Indians magazine about her 700-acre working ranch – near Shelton’s own 1,200-acre ranch – where she can shed her red carpet clothes and pull on her riding boots. The prides of her ranch are her horses, chickens, pigs and the authenticity of real farm life. “You’d find me in mud-splattered jeans. And mud all over my boots,” she told Cowboys and Indians. “’Cause it’s a real farm.”
Lambert has also had more than a few stray dogs on her ranch. So many, in fact, that in December 2014 her MuttNation Foundation opened the five-acre Redemption Ranch, a low-kill animal shelter. MuttNation Foundation is an animal rescue advocacy organization founded by Lambert and her mom in 2007. Per Rolling Stone Country, Redemption Ranch replaced the government-run shelter that used to serve Tishomingo (Lambert rents the land and solicited donations from Pedigree and others to improve the facility).
Lambert has spread her ranch roots to the rest of the town as well. The “Platinum” singer also has a bed-and-breakfast called Ladysmith and a store called The Pink Pistol, which is housed in a former pharmacy. (Pink is widely reported as Lambert’s favorite color – and some of the walls at Redemption Ranch are even painted that color.)
And while other Grammy-winners may tout their celebrity chefs, Lambert has ranch-style culinary traditions. “Blake taught me how to bow-hunt when we first started dating,” she told People. “Our Thanksgiving tradition is to shoot our own wild turkey and fry it.”
As you’d expect from a guy whose biggest hit is called “Beachin’” and also sings about “Endless Summer” and being “Barefoot,” Jake Owen loves the sand between his toes.
Owen may be a Nashville star now, but he hails from Vero Beach, Florida, and grew up on a surfboard. His love of the beach and catching a wave are strong themes in his lyrics. Even as he experiments with new directions in his music and works to be acknowledged for more than a good party song, he’s holding tight to his ability to hang 10.
"I’m not downplaying that,” Owen told Rolling Stone Country. “I’ve made a good living and a good career out of doing songs like "Barefoot Blue Jean Night."
In fact, Owen credits his music career to an epiphany he had after a wakeboarding accident left his shoulder in a sling and his dreams of being on the Florida State University golf team dashed.
"This scar that I have on my shoulder reminds me about the one dark time in my life,” he says on his website. "It took that accident to make me realize that I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to be doing. What I was supposed to be doing was something that fulfilled me. Music.”
Nashville has plenty of water, but not a lot of surf, so Owen can now been seen embracing inland boating culture. In the video for “Days of Gold” he drives a 2014 Malibu Wakesetter 247 LSV and sings about “Southern summer.” He told CMT Radio that he’s already gotten his 2-year-old daughter Pearl in on the action.
“She’s currently learning to wakesurf,” Owen told CMT Radio. “She’s learning with me right now. She has her own little lifejacket. She loves it. I’m really cool right now as far as being the dad that can allow her to water ski.”
Just when you think things can’t get better for Luke Bryan – he goes and scores another home run.
Or at least, in this case, keeps adding to his batting average.The country star joined the Chicago White Sox this week for Spring training and stepped into the batting cage, as can be seen from a video that the team posted on social media.
Bryan joked to reporters that he realized back in 10th grade he was better suited to handle a guitar over a baseball bat – but if he really wants some pointers, he can get them from his long-time good friend, newly-minted White Sox player Adam LaRoche.
Or even team pitcher John Danks, who is married to Luke’s fellow country music singer – and Miranda Lambert’s BFF – Ashley Monroe!
If Bryan is too intimidated by the pros, he could always ask his friend Jason Aldean for some practice, who turned down a baseball scholarship in order to pursue music and likely knows a thing or two about the sport’s technique.
White Sox manager Robin Ventura said Luke is always welcome to sing the national anthem at a game.
NEW YORK (AP) — Even though Taylor Swift has officially gone pop, she still has a special place with the Academy of Country Music, which will be giving her and superstars like Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Miranda Lambert and Garth Brooks a special honor at next month’s ACM Awards.
The Academy is handing out a 50th Anniversary Milestone Award to celebrate seven of their biggest winners, also including Reba McEntire and Brooks & Dunn. The honorees will be given a trophy specially designed by jeweler David Yurman, complete with black diamonds, sterling silver and white gold.
Garth Brooks has gotten the most ACM Entertainer of the Year trophies with six; Chesney has four and also got the first fan-voted Entertainer of the Year. Lambert has 18 ACM Awards, making her the most awarded solo female artist; McEntire has the most female vocalist of the year trophies with seven; Strait has won 21 ACMs over four consecutive decades; Swift was the youngest Entertainer of the Year winner at 21; and Brooks & Dunn have the most ACMs in total with 27.
The Milestone Awards will be presented April 19 at the 50th annual ACMs, to be held at AT&T Stadium outside of Dallas and broadcast live on CBS.
FGL burst into the spotlight back in 2012 with “Cruise,” which remains the top-selling country music digital single of all time. “Sippin’ on Fire” is the third single off the boys’ sophomore albumAnything Goes, which debuted atop the Billboard 200 albums chart late last year. Kelley and Tyler Hubbard tell ET that they’re “already working on record three” and open up about their recipe for success.
"There’s a lot of great recipes for a great country song, and definitely whiskey is part of that," Kelley says with a laugh. Adds Hubbard, "I think there’s more depth to our music than whiskey, beer, pretty women and big trucks, you know. I mean, that’s part of our lifestyle. We have two beautiful girls in our life and we like to drink and have a good time, and we both have jacked up trucks, so we’re gonna sing about that. But at the same time, our music is deeper than that."
Speaking of “beautiful girls,” Kelley recently celebrated his first wedding anniversary with wife Brittney Cole and Hubbard is set to wed longtime girlfriend Hayley Stommel this summer.
"I couldn’t be more excited, it’s gonna be awesome," Hubbard gushed of his upcoming nuptials.
"They’re a great couple, they’re perfect," Kelley adds. "I’m excited about the wedding — pumped! I’ve actually deemed myself the wedding planner, the best man, kinda everything. I’m running the ship here for the wedding," he says with a laugh.
That includes the bachelor party.
"We’re gonna actually kick it at Tyler’s farm," Kelley says. "We’re gonna have all the groomsmen up and I think the recipe for that would be dirt bikes, some whiskey, some cigars, and probably a lot of fires, man. It’s gonna be a good time."
Looks like they’re off to a good start: there’s plenty of fire in their full-length music video, debuting Wednesday on Vevo.
On a recent stop by the RAM studios, Dwight Yoakam pulled out a guitar and showed off some blazing new tracks from his upcoming new studio album, Second Hand Heart, which hits the streets early next month.
Although Yoakam’s been rocking Nashville for three decades strong, and has explored myriad styles over those years, his latest set is drawing comparisons to his 1986 debut, Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc. Yoakam himself encouraged this line of thinking by treating us to a rendition of a song from that very album, “Miner’s Prayer.”
The song is a special composition about Yoakam’s grandfather, who was a Kentucky coal miner. The rare look back to this gem was inspired when, according to Yoakam, a fellow artist (whom he declined to name) expressed interest in the song recently.
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member and Grammy nominee Gretchen Peters is one of those can-do-it-all artists; in addition to winning praise from fellow songwriters such as Brandy Clark, the singer has won scores of chart and critical acclaim in the fields of country, pop, and Americana.
Her latest release, Blackbirds, came out last month and features roots luminaries including Jason Isbell and Suzy Bogguss. Yahoo Music is excited to debut the video for the title track for fans to enjoy.
Additionally, Peters — who writes movingly of such rare subjects such as female aging — has had her songs picked up by artists including Etta James, Bonnie Raitt, the Neville Brothers, Patty Loveless, George Strait, Bryan Adams, Faith Hill and Martina McBride.
For more information on Blackbirds and to keep up with Peters’s schedule, check here.
The two got engaged in September 2014 after 2 years of dating. Kerr is a former American Idol contestant. Aldean is a country star with five platinum albums and a slew of hit songs on the Hot Country charts.
Their relationship had a bit of a rocky start: They were photographed getting close and personal at a bar in Hollywood in 2012 — while Aldean was still married to his first wife, high school sweetheart Jessica Ussery. They filed for divorce in April 2013, and Aldean and Kerr announced they were officially dating in March 2014.
Several friends and family members were on hand to watch the couple exchange vows, including Duck Dynasty's Willie Robertson, with whom Aldean co-owns a hunting business. Aldean's two daughters from his first marriage, Keeley, 12, and Kendyl, 7, were also in attendance.
Since his debut album Montalvo went straight to the top of the country charts in November, Sam Hunt has become the breakout star of the genre.
The former football player-turned-country artist already has a platinum single, “Leave The Night On,” and has become the talk of Music City for his unique mix of ’90s R&B-infused country music.
Now, he’s making headlines about the new music video for his song “Take Your Time.” The track itself is a love song, but the video veers into what director Tim Mattia calls “darker, grittier” territory: It features a storyline about domestic violence. In the video, Hunt helps a woman and her child flee an abusive partner.
Hunt’s fellow country artists like Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott and singer Mickey Guyton have praised the video, and music critics are applauding Hunt for not only pushing the envelope, but also bringing country music into the current national dialogue about domestic violence.
It shows that the genre has come a long way since 1991, when Garth Brooks addressed the same subject in his video for the song “The Thunder Rolls.” The clip was banned by CMT - but ultimately, won the CMA trophy for Video of the Year.


1. Scott Thompson, actor and comedian
Scott Thompson, actor and comedian, joins me to promote his show at Yuk Yuk’s Comedy Club in Ottawa, October 20-21. He explains how his journey with cancer prompted him to follow a career in comedy and is even thinking about recording a comedy album. Listen to his story here.
2. Eric Alper, SiriusXM Host
Eric Alper joins me to discuss the life, music and activism of Gord Downie. As he mourns along with the rest of Canada, Alper explains how Downie’s work has influenced the music industry and politics due to his passion for Indigenous issues. Listen to the full interview here.
3. John Shannon, Sportscaster
Sportsnet's John Shannon talks about the return of the Sens captain Erik Karlsson. With Karlsson leading the way once again, Shannon believes that the Sens have an even better chance this season. Listen to this segment.
We welcome a variety of expert guests to discuss the latest local, Canadian and World news on Ottawa Today every weekday morning from 9 am to 1 pm on 1310News. You can also watch Ottawa Today LIVE on Rogers TV.


I am super-excited!!! Tonight was are going to see Ryan Adams in Morgantown at the Metropolitan Theatre. This will make the third time we've seen him in concert and the previous two were simply awesome!! We heard from a friend who saw him in concert earlier this week that Ryan was unable to play guitar or piano due to a recent skateboarding accident. Bummer!!! Still, it should be a great show. I am posting a photo from the first time we saw Ryan in Washington, D.C. at the 9:30 Club.


Which role do most people associate with the actor Theodore Bikel? Probably Tevye the Dairyman—after all, Bikel played that part for over a thousand performances of Fiddler on the Roof. But in this autobiography, first published in 1994 and now re-issued with a new postscript as Bikel turns 90, we hear about the many other roles, both on and off the stage, played by this incredibly versatile character actor, political activist, labor leader, and folksinger whose family fled Austria after the Anschluss.
Although he began his career in the theater, Bikel, who was named after Theodor Herzl and whose surname is the Hebrew acronym for “The Children of Israel are holy to God,” was sought after for all sorts of film and TV roles that made use of his chameleon-like ability to assume different personalities, speak several languages, and adopt various foreign accents. While maintaining a busy acting career, however, Bikel’s guitar was his constant companion; he performed folksongs all over the world, including at Buckingham Palace. (Perhaps his most unusual venue was on an aircraft hijacked by a mentally unstable individual, where Bikel performed folk songs to calm the passengers!)
He also recounts many interesting anecdotes about the famous actors and actresses with whom he worked. From his Broadway debut as Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music (opposite Mary Martin) to his film role inThe African Queen, starring Katherine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, to his role playing Kissinger in The Final Days, Bikel achieved critical success, making friends wherever he went.
Apart from his work as an entertainer, Bikel was active in an astonishing number of human rights and liberal political causes. He worked for civil rights for African Americans (and was arrested during protests); advocated for Soviet Jewry and met with Jewish dissidents in the Soviet Union; participated in protests against South African apartheid; served as president of Actor’s Equity; worked to establish the National Council on the Arts; testified before Congress on behalf of the Arts; has been a vocal supporter of the State of Israel (even though he expresses strong objections to the settlements and other Israeli government policies); and has met U.S. presidents from JFK to Clinton.
Bikel’s deep and abiding love for the Jewish people, as well as his strong Jewish identity, are a recurring theme in this book. He cares very deeply about Holocaust survivors, and his international performances of Yiddish songs before heads of state at events commemorating the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising as well as the anniversary of Kristallnacht remain among his proudest achievements.
Bikel strikes a poignant note as he accepts responsibility for not being more involved with his two sons, born when he was in his mid-forties, as well as his failure to imbue them with his deeply-felt Jewish identity. Nevertheless, the reader will be left with deep respect for this remarkable, principled and accomplished entertainer, who wishes to one day be remembered as “Der Zinger fun zayn folk,” the folksinger of his people.
Available for purchase HERE.
"A compelling life, taking Bikel from pre–World War II Eastern Europe to an acting career in Israel; emigration to England after the war, training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, and initial success in British theater and film; a leap to the Broadway stage and stardom in The Sound of Music; productive years as a Hollywood character actor; a new career as a folksinger in the late1950s; then several decades of activism, as president of Actors’ Equity and a prominent figure in the civil rights and anti-Vietnam War movements."—Kirkus Reviews
"An engaging, well-written memoir . . . full of theater stories about playing Mitch opposite Vivien Leigh’s Blanche in the London production of A Streetcar Named Desire, playing Baron von Trapp opposite Mary Martin’s Maria in The Sound of Music, and of course his many performances as Tevye [in Fiddler on the Roof.]"—Oakland Tribune
"Bikel has been an articulate spokesman against oppression, dictatorship, inhumanity, war."—Boston Globe


If you let it, Love will show you who you really are.
Michael O’Malley, Jr., the American member of the world-famous singing group, Bel Homme, is known as the “Mysterious One.”
Even before Michael joined, rumors circulated about his sexuality. He’s done nothing to encourage them, but he’s done nothing to stop them either. He keeps his private life private from even the other guys. His true passions center around his beloved music.
Until recently, Charlee Most was a nurse/administrator in charge of the entire hospice program for the state of Illinois. She’s best friends with Michael’s brother, Patrick. Both Charlee and Patrick have been hired by Bel Homme’s Il Maestro Teddy Wilson and are leaving with Michael to go back to England where the group’s recording compound is located on Teddy’s country estate. Charlee’s going to care for Teddy’s best friend, Bruno, who is gravely ill. Patrick is an ex-police officer who is going to handle security for the popular singers.
Charlee has secrets of her own. She’s cared for gay men all her life, and she knows them extremely well. Although she and Michael share a powerful physical attraction, she’s heard the rumors about his sexuality, and he’s an enigma to her. She’s totally mystified by his contradictory personality, and it only intensifies when she sees the small pink tattoo he sports at the bottom of his spine: an inverted pink triangle depicting the patch homosexuals were forced to wear on their uniforms in Nazi war camps. She’s known very few gay men who have one, and most find it too painful to even think about.
A straight guy who wears a homosexual tattoo? Who is Michael…really?
She’s about to find out the unique, musically-gifted man she’s falling in love with is not only in danger from a revengeful fan, he’s also seriously ill himself.
Michael’s about to give his heart away for the first time in his life.
This scene takes place just before their journey begins to unfold. Patrick is sick with a celebratory hangover, Charlee’s just been the recipient of that jubilation, and Michael thinks he might still be dreaming …
“Oh, my God,” Charlee gasped when she noticed Michael in the bed. She clutched her sports bra to her naked chest. “I decided to use the hairdryer on my damp top. I didn’t know you were in here.” She was babbling, but c’mon! She’d thought she was alone when she’d stripped.
Michael reached up and opened the blinds. Then he adjusted his pillow, stretched out his long legs under the sheet, and let out a yawn. Leaning on his raised arm, he grinned. “Good morning.”
“Yes, well, good morning.” Keeping her elbows tucked to her sides, she managed to get the t-shirt out of the drawer without compromising her limited modesty.
Michael scraped his fingers through his hair. “I thought for a minute I was dreaming.” He slowly moved from her face to her middle, from her middle up to her face. “No, you’re definitely real.”
Charlee frowned. “Why didn’t you make some noise or something?” She shifted her shoulders. “I think it’s highly rude to lurk.”
Michael yawned again for show, enjoying her simmering temper that gave off the punch of strong caffeine. “You didn’t give me a chance. Just walked in here and—whoop—then all you had on was skin. Unfortunately, I only saw your back.” He eyed what he could see of her front now. “You make a great tease.”
Squeezing both tops even tighter, Charlee took a couple steps forward, drawn to the picture he made lying there. His chest was powerfully built, and his raised arm showed muscles even from the underside. No shy posture from him. He sprawled there beneath the sheets like a willing pagan sacrifice offered up to her. “I apologize for intruding. Patrick puked all over me, and—”
“I heard. Good thing he has today to recover before we fly to England tomorrow. I warned him about drinking too much last night, but he wouldn’t listen.”
That Charlee understood. “He never listens to me either.”
“How about you?” Michael asked. “All packed and ready to go?”
“Are you kidding?” she replied, inching toward the door. She needed to get out of here. “I’ve been packed and ready for three days. It’s hard to plan, though, since I don’t know where I’ll be living long-term.” Almost to the hall, she turned.
Mike shrugged. “Hey, it’s Teddy. Could be the moon.”
Almost to the hall, Charlee turned. “I’m onboard even for that. Go back to sleep.”
“Wait,” Michael said, sitting forward. He motioned with his hand. “Come here.”
She debated. Why did he have to look so good? The pale morning light dappled those powerful shoulders of his. His sleep-mussed brown hair stood up in places and flirted with his sky blue eyes in front, making him look huggable and endearing. Her body took a step all by itself. Sweet little boy. One hundred percent pure adult male. The perfect combination. She took two more. Well, in her own defense, who could blame her? Michael deserved to be called a bel homme, which was French for “beautiful man.” He was a member of the singing group with that name, and he surely was a stunning physical specimen that proved it. But it was the way he continued looking at her, not the way he looked, that really got to her. Giving in, she trudged over to the side of his bed. “What?”
Now that she was close, Michael forgot what he was going to say. “Beats me. I think I just wanted a better look.”
Charlee laughed at his goofy honesty. “Well, knock yourself out, but I doubt you’re going to like me much this morning.” Lifting her arm, she smelled herself. “Mmm, Eau de vomit.”
Michael snatched her wrist, watching her smile fade, replaced by a new look in her eye. He was turning her on. Slowly, he urged her forward. “Let me be the judge.” When he raised it to his nose, surprise slammed into him, and he shot his eyes to hers. He was almost sure, but he wasn’t positive, thanks to the faint scent of barf. “What is that?”
“I just told you.”
He took another whiff. “No, I mean you smell like mine.”
“My perfume. Are you wearing my perfume?” The singing group he was in marketed four perfumes for women. Each member had his own unique scent.
Charlee forgot she’d spritzed some on this morning. “Oh, yes. Patrick gave it to me.” She gave a little tug, but he hung on.
“Nice.” He shifted his gaze to the plumpness of one of her breast, lifted by the press of her fist. Was there a sexier shape in the world? His finger twitched. He wanted to make contact and sculpt her at his whim, but settled instead for a brush on the wrist with his thumb. “I really think mine’s the best.”
For one ridiculous second, Charlie almost responded to that droopy stare by dropping her hand that kept her covered. She honestly didn’t know what she’d do if he pulled her closer. She used disdain to get out of the moment. “You just love yourself, don’t you?”
“On you, I do.” Michael said, letting his long fingers slide off her super-soft skin.
Charlee felt that glide zap through her system. He had all the right moves. All the right words, especially the ones he’d just said. He was perfect for her, but he wasn’t hers. She needed to remember that Michael was a free spirit who didn’t belong to anyone. “Well,” she said, retreating, “I’m going to go dry my top and then go for my run. Later.”
“Want company?” he called out.
She halted. “You?”
Michael swung his feet to the floor, keeping the sheet covering his middle. “Of course, me.”
Charlee counted his toes. The exercise kept her sane because she was even attracted to them. “Um, okay. Sure. I guess.” Then her ego kicked in, and she flashed a challenging wink. “But I doubt you’ll be able to keep up with me.”
Michael watched her strut away, the velvety slope and arch of her back reminding him of some priceless art. He was rock hard, and still, he laughed. “Jeee-suz,” he mumbled, leaning down on his thighs and scratching his head. He was rock-hard, and still he laughed. Looking out the doorway, he called after her, “We’ll just have to see about that, babe.”


Originally a poet in her local church choir, it would be fair to say that Elizabeth Harris has expanded her horizons, swapping blessings and hymns for ‘Deepthroat’ and ‘Anal.’ Going by “CupcakKe”, the Chicago rapper dropped her newest album “Queen Elizabitch” earlier this year with an on-brand fill of explicit lyrics and raunchy vidseo that have made a name for her online.
Her song ‘Vagina’ swiftly went viral on YouTube in 2015 and at the time of writing boasts 1,930,556 views. As she told Shane Dawson ‘[Deepthroating with CupcakKe:’] “I started out small you know, and God is everything” … “But then you know when my vagina got wet I started rapping songs called Vagina”.
While many of us might have dismissed it as just another cringey viral video, her five minutes of fame have blossomed into a growing career (2 albums and multiple mixtapes) with a dedicated following.
Predictable, the internet loves her. CupcakKe’s Youtube channel has 230,000 followers and a fanbase she calls her ‘slurpers’.
It is difficult to establish whether her fans are ironic or genuine – partly because it’s got to be awkward playing her lyrics in public and embarrassing to admit to being an out an proud “slurper”. Comments on her videos vary from respect and seemingly genuine support from fans to utter shock and trolling.
It would appear CupcakKe’s musical talent has branched out from more than just sex, however, as she approaches more serious topics of late. She has written ‘LGBT’ a song discussing the issue of homophobia, ‘Pedophile’ which reveals her traumatic personal experiences of sexual abuse as a child, ‘Biggie smalls’ a rap responding to Instagram models and supporting all body images and ‘Picking Cotton’ which highlights racism in our modern society.
These songs have encouraged a growing respect in place of ironic likes – and deservedly so.
Marek Axton, a London student and undercover fan of CupcakKe has said that while he first listened for comedic purposes, his views on the rapper have changed dramatically,
“I found it hilarious how she dressed and rapped in a highly controversial manner (…) I have lately discovered her albums on Spotify (…) some of her songs convey a positive message for people. Looking at her social media media, she comes across as a kind hearted individual. She once offered to pay for a hotel for one of her fans who was kicked out of home for coming out as homosexual, which shows she really cares about the issues she raps about.”
“Though the language she uses is highly explicit, I think it is necessary in order for her to make it. Without the controversy, she would just be one of thousands identical rappers, and would most likely never break through.”
So should we be horrified that squatting in nipple stickers and suggestively slobbering on various phallic shaped foods, is a big hit with the YouTube community? Or should we be congratulating the youth on their ability to accept a freer and more liberal music taste, looking past the grunting and grinding to reveal the positive message underneath?
Sure, CupcakKe’s music might not be something you’d share with your family, but then again Nicki Minaj or Ariana Grande lyrics around your grandparents aren’t too great either. Music in general, especially in the charts, tends to be hypersexual. So to demonise and condemn CupcakKe for taking this to its logical conclusion is hypocritical. Her shock tactics are precisely what have allowed her to reach a global audience and take on topics that genuinely matter to her. The latest album marks the confluence of these two types of maturity – if you don’t like it, don’t watch it.


The crass train wreck that launched a thousand memes – even if we didn’t watch the VMAs, we’ve all been subjected to Miley’s fun with the foam hand. Her performance is considered by some to be racially offensive, and I think we can all agree that we saw a little too much of Miss Cyrus. We’re all sick of it. And yeah, we all fully acknowledge that she’s maybe losing it
just a little bit completely. Let’s stop beating the poor, dead, zombie horse at this point, shall we?
Why isn’t Robin Thicke being roasted over the same fire?
Thicke is 36 and married and yet spent his stage time at the VMAs pelvic-thrusting behind a doubled-over 20 year old while singing “I know you want it” over and over. In the video for Blurred Lines (caution – so not safe for work), women are strutting around and fawning all over him sans-clothing. Completely naked – the same look that Miley’s nude bikini conjures. Do we really think that her look wasn’t at all inspired by his video, the video that totally objectifies women? (Also, can we please talk about why Thicke was channeling Beetle Juice?!)
I’m going to leave my rant here, but I’d like to know whether you agree or disagree. What do you think: Why are we skewering Miley for being a slut and an attention-whore but not calling out a man almost twice her age for the same thing?
P.S. This parody says it all about the “Blurred Lines” video. When you flip it around, it just seems kind of ridiculous, right? Hilarious!


Jennifer Lopez is one of my favorite performers of all time. I’ve been enjoying her movies, music, and dancing for…
February 20, 2019
We’re getting really close to the March 8th release of Captain Marvel and to celebrate I thought it’d be fun…
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Kristen Hope Justice is an award winning singer, songwriter, musician, writer, motivational speaker, and healer. Her first solo album, Shape This Love, won an Akademia award and an Intel Superstars award, both for best album. Kristen is now working on her second album, Calling of the Divine. This album is a twelve song album of all original, uplifting, positive, Contemporary Christian music. Kristen is the music director at Unity of Kennesaw, a new thought, spiritual community that focuses on the spiritual tools of prayer, mindfulness and meditation in daily life to transform ourselves and ultimately empowering humanity to transform the world. An eternal student of new thought principles, Kristen is also a Reiki healer and infuses the healing energy of love to deliver her powerful uplifting messages. Please visit www.kristenjustice.com for more information about Kristen and her Musical Healing Ministry.


DJ Khaled and Floyd Mayweather both pitched deals to their followers, but did not disclose or admit they were paid to do so. Both are being fined as a result of the undisclosed sponsorships, which were, of course, for sleazy cryptocurrencies.
Both took money to promote Centra Tech, an ICO that eventually led to fraud charges for several of its masterminds. The SEC found that Mayweather took $100,000 to promote the Centra token, as well as $200,000 to promote two other ICOs, in posts like an Instagram message where he told his millions of followers "You can call me Floyd Crypto Mayweather from now on." DJ Khaled was paid $50,000 to promote Centra Tech -- facts neither mentioned in their social media posts. While they avoided admitting any wrongdoing, both will have to give up the money they were paid, along with an additional $300,000 penalty for Mayweather to go with a $100,000 fine for DJ Khaled (plus interest).
A phenomenon of the Twitter era is celebrities not really bothering with professional financial and business help beyond accountants. The dumb ones are easier marks than ever.
Here"s the SEC press release on the Centra coin shenanigan. It peaked at a $240m market cap but quickly deflated and is now nearly worthless; the founders were arrested in April.Full article


Hosted by Jane Lynch
PLUS…. STEPHANIE J. BLOCK, LENA HALL, CELINA JAITLY, GREG LOUGANIS, BILLY
PORTER, THOMAS ROBERTS, CHELY WRIGHT, MATT GOULD, GRIFFIN MATTHEWS, AND THE
CAST OF WITNESS UGANDA, THE CAST OF WICKED, THE CAST OF ONCE, THE CAST OF I
AM HARVEY MILK, AND MORE
(Performers are subject to change)
Written By: Dustin Lance Black
Directed By: Schele Williams
Produced By: Jayson Raitt
Musical Directed by: Alex Lacamoire
PERFORMING & PRESENTING
Jane cut her theatrical teeth at The Second City, Steppenwolf Theatre and in many church basements all over the greater Chicagoland area. Recent film credits include A.C.O.D, Three Stooges, Wreck-It Ralph, Julie & Julia, Shrek Forever After, and many others.Jane can currently be seen in the Ryan Murphy television series Glee on FOX for which she is an Emmy and Golden Globe winner for portraying the iconic television character, Sue Sylvester. Jane’s play Oh Sister, My Sister! had runs at the Tamarind Theatre and Bang Theater garnering the LA Weekly Comedy Ensemble of the Year Award. Jane also authored the autobiography Happy Accidents which topped several national best sellers list, including the New York and LA Times. Starting this May, Jane will be featured in the Broadway production of Annie as Miss Hannigan in a limited Broadway run at the Leonard H. Goldenson Theater in New York. She also will be seen hosting NBC’s newest game show hit, Hollywood Game Night, produced by Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner.
Composer, singer, author, actor, activist, Sting was born in Newcastle, England before moving to London in 1977 to form The Police with Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers. The band released five albums and earned six Grammy awards. Since 1985, Sting has released 14 solo albums. His latest, The Last Ship, is inspired by the story of his new musical of the same name drawing upon his memories of the shipbuilding community in Wallsend where he was born and raised. “The Last Ship” will make its Broadway debut at the Neil Simon Theatre with previews beginning September 29 and opening night set for October 26. Sting is a member of both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He has appeared in more than 15 films and authored two books, including the New York Times best-selling memoir, Broken Music. He has sold close to 100 million albums from his combined work with the Police and as a solo artist and has earned an additional 10 Grammy awards, a Golden Globe, an Emmy, and three Oscar nominations. His support for human rights organizations such as the Rainforest Fund, Amnesty International and Live Aid mirrors his art in its universal outreach. In December, Sting will receive the Kennedy Center Honors, one of the most prestigious cultural prizes in the United States. For further details, please visit:www.sting.com and www.thelastship.com.
Patti LuPone’s most recent New York stage appearances include David Mamet’s The Anarchist, Joanne in the NY Philharmonic’s concert production of Stephen Sondheim’s Company, her debut with the New York City Ballet as guest soloist in the company’s production of The Seven Deadly Sins and as Lucia in the musical Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. A two-time Tony Award winner for her performances in Evita and in the 2008 critically acclaimed revival of Gypsy, her other memorable stage performances include Mrs. Lovett in Sondheim’sSweeney Todd (both on Broadway and at the NY Philharmonic), Fosca in Passion for Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series, and starring roles in the Broadway productions of Noises Off, The Old Neighborhood, Master Class, Anything Goes, Oliver!, and The Robber Bridegroom. She is the author of the NY Times best-seller Patti LuPone: A Memoir.
Stephanie J. Block
Stephanie J. Block received both the 2013 Tony Award and Drama Desk nomination for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her portrayal of Alice Nutting/Edwin Drood in The Roundabout Theatre’s production of The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Other Broadway credits include Reno Sweeney in the 2011 Tony Award winning revival of Anything Goes, 9 to 5: The Musical (Drama Desk Nomination for Best Actress in a Musical), The Pirate Queen, and The Boy From Oz (opposite Hugh Jackman). Ms. Block is best known for her portrayal as Elphaba in the Broadway company of Wicked as well as originating the role in the National Tour. Off-Broadway shows include Little Miss Sunshine (Drama Desk Nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical), By the Way, and Meet Vera Stark (Drama Desk Nomination for Best Actress in a Play). Some of her regional credits include Funny Girl, James Joyce’s The Dead, Triumph of Love, and The Grass Harp. Her voice can be heard on numerous commercial jingles and recordings including her solo album “This Place I Know.”stephaniejblock.com
Matt Gould, Griffin Matthews, and the cast of Witness Uganda
Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews are the co-creators of the Broadway-bound musical, Witness Uganda, which premiered at the American Repertory Theater in winter 2014. The show has received critical acclaim, including a 2012 and 2014 Richard Rodgers Award and has been performed in concert around the world. Witness Uganda is based on the true story of Matthews’s journey to Uganda, where he “adopts” a group of orphans and learns to navigate the delicate balance between aid work and social interference, gay rights in Uganda, and the evolving responsibility of Americans abroad. www.witnessuganda.com
Celina Jaitly is an acclaimed Indian actress, United Nations Equality Champion, human rights and animal welfare activist, brand ambassador and writer. Celina has starred in series of highly successful Bollywood movies and other cinema film productions. She is the recipient of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) humanitarian award. Outside of her acting career and role as a social entrepreneur, Celina has devoted most of her time to advocating for the rights of members of the LGBT communities in India. She played an important role in bringing to the public eye the case for repeal of Section 377 of India’s criminal code, a colonial era provision that criminalized same-sex relationships. With the law now revoked, Celina continues to focus her boundless energy on her quest for greater respect for the rights of LGBT people in India and beyond.
Four-time Olympic champion, Greg Louganis is widely considered the greatest diver in history. The only male to sweep both the 3m and 10m diving events in consecutive Olympic Games (’84 and ’88), Greg earned a total of 5 Olympic medals, 5 World Championship titles and 47 national titles (more than anyone in U.S. history). In 1984, Greg received the AAU’s James E. Sullivan Award for outstanding achievements. The following year, he was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame. In 1987, he won the Jesse Owens Award. In 1993, he was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame. And in 1994, he was presented with the U.S. Olympic Committee’s Robert J. Kane Award. His 1995 autobiography, Breaking the Surface spent five weeks as the New York Times #1 best seller. Currently, Greg is a mentor for the US Olympic diving team, a judge for the Red Bull Cliff Diving Tour, a dog agility competitor in National AKC and USDAA, and a motivational speaker. He is the subject of a feature-length documentary film, Back on Board, and stars in both ABC’s Splash and Channel 7’s Celebrity Splash (Australia).
A native of Pittsburgh, PA, Billy Porter is a Tony Award, Grammy Award, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award winner for Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Lola in the Tony Award winning Best Musical “Kinky Boots.” Other Broadway credits include: Miss Saigon, Five Guys Named Moe, Grease, Smokey Joe’s Café and Dreamgirls. His one-man show, Ghetto Superstar: The Man That I Am debuted at The Public Theater in NYC in conjunction with City Theatre of Pittsburgh and was nominated for a 2005 GLAAD Media Award. Film and Television credits include: “The Humbling” (w/ Al Pacino), “The Broken Hearts Club”, “Intern”, “Noel” (with Susan Sarandon and Robin Williams), and others. Recordings: Most recently Billy’s Back On Broadway (Concord), At The Corner Of Broadway + Soul – “LIVE” from Joe’s Pub, “Untitled” (A&M records), and many more. His original song “Time” has been featured thrice on the mega-hit television series “So You Think You Can Dance.” Billy’s first full length play “While I Yet Live,” is currently scheduled to debut Off-Broadway in conjunction with Primary Stages in the Fall of 2014.
A native of Atlanta, Ryan Shaw made his New York debut in Tyler Perry’s play I Know I’ve Been Changed. Mr. Shaw further made a name for himself doing Motown covers, joining the group Fabulous Soul Shakers. His first album, This is Ryan Shaw, for Columbia, earned him a 2008 Grammy nomination for “I Am Your Man.” He opened for Van Halen’s 2007-2008 North American tour. In 2011 Mr. Shaw received another Grammy nomination for “In Between,” and he has just received his third for “Yesterday” on his new CD, Real Love on Dynotone Records. He is currently playing Stevie Wonder on Broadway in Motown: The Musical; the cast album has also received a Grammy nomination His website is thisisryanshaw.com
Chely Wright rose to fame as a commercial country singer, having released eight studio albums selling more than 1,000,000 copies in the U.S. and charted more than 15 singles on the Billboard charts. On the strength of her debut album in 1994, the Academy of Country Music named Chely Top New Female Vocalist of 1995. Her first hit came in 1997 with “Shut Up and Drive” followed two years later by her first number one single, “Single White Female” and in 2005, the zeitgeist – capturing hit “The Bumper of My S.U.V.” In 2010, Chely Wright released her eighth album, “Lifted Off the Ground” produced by Rodney Crowell, revealing a dramatic artistic transformation and emerging as a singer songwriter of the first order. The album would never have come to be were it not for an equally dramatic personal transformation which she candidly and painstakingly documented in a memoir entitled “Like Me” published by Random House the same day. Chely made history by being the first country music star to come out publicly as gay.
The cast of I AM HARVEY MILK
Part choral work, part theater piece, I Am Harvey Milk, music and words by Tony and Grammy Award nominee Andrew Lippa, weaves the story of Harvey Milk’s life – from boyhood to becoming the first openly gay man to hold public office in California to his assassination. Tonight we present “Tired of the Silence” with Lippa as Milk, and a 16-member Broadway men’s chorus directed by Noah Himmelstein and musical directed by Paul Staroba. The NY premiere of I Am Harvey Milk will be on October 6 at Avery Fisher Hall, starring Andrew, Tony and Emmy Award winner Kristin Chenoweth and Noah Marlowe and featuring the Orchestra of St Luke’s and the 120 member All-Star Broadway Men’s Chorus. Produced by Academy Award Winner Bruce Cohen, Robb Nanus, Jessica Leventhal, and Tony Award winners Bruce Robert Harris and Jack W. Batman, directed by Noah and musical directed by Joel Fram, the concert will benefit the Harvey Milk Arts Fund at the Hetrick-Martin Institute (HMI). Tickets are now on sale at http://www.iamharveymilk.com
The cast of ONCE
From the very first note, Once draws you in and never lets go. This emotionally captivating musical is the only show on Broadway to have music that won the Academy Award®, Grammy Award®, Olivier Award and Tony Award®. The New York Post says, this “gem of a show wins its standing ovations the old-fashioned way: with a love story, great songs, compelling characters and inventive stagecraft.” Set in modern day Dublin, Once is the story of a Guy who gave up on his music—and his love—and the Girl who inspired him to dream again. This exhilarating musical is performed by an extraordinary cast of actor-musicians who sing, dance and play their hearts out on stage. Directed and choreographed by the brilliant team of Tony Award-winner John Tiffany and Steven Hoggett (The Glass Menagerie), this theatrically breathtaking production will dazzle you with its originality, wit and unforgettable music. Featuring all of the magical songs from the critically-acclaimed film, including the Oscar-winning “Falling Slowly,” this achingly beautiful, joyously uplifting show strikes an unforgettable chord in audiences and speaks to the power of music to connect us all. A show like that only comes around Once.
The cast of WICKED
Winner of over 100 major awards, including the Grammy Award and three Tony Awards®, WICKED is the untold story of the witches of Oz. Based on the novel by Gregory Maguire, WICKED has music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and a book by Winnie Holzman. The production is directed by Joe Mantello, with musical staging by Wayne Cilento. WICKED has been playing at the Gershwin Theatre since October 2003, and is about to celebrate its 11th anniversary – it is the longest-running musical at this theatre, since it opened in 1972. Producers David Stone and Marc Platt, and the entire company of WICKED, are happy to host tonight’s benefit performance.
J. Bob Alotta
Filmmaker and technologist turned Executive Director, J. Bob Alotta leads the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice. While based in New York City, Astraea addresses the most critical issues faced by LGBTQI people working for social, racial, gender, and economic justice around the globe. Through film and at Astraea, Bob engages philanthropists, government leaders, and community members to transform the marginalization of LGBTQI people in our societies. Representing a new generation of social change philanthropists, Bob’s work builds new models of social justice, expanding the relevance of rights and dignity for all LGBTQI people.
2014 Tony Winner Lena Hall is currently starring as Yitzhak in the hit Broadway revival of Hedwig and the Angry for which she won for Featured Actress in a Musical. Prior to Hedwig, she starred as Nicola in the Tony Award winning musical Kinky Boots. Previous Broadway and Off Broadway roles include starring in the award winning Toxic Avenger at New World Stages, Tarzan (Original Cast), Dracula (Original Cast), 42nd St ( Anytime Annie), Cats ( Demeter), Beg Bugs ( NYMF) and Green Eyes ( Fringe). TV and Film roles include “Young Miranda” in the Sex and the City film, The Stepford Wives, The Graduates, All My Children. Born and raised in San Francisco, Ca; Lena Hall traveled the world performing and received her first big break singing for Pope John Paul II at Candlestick Stadium for over 50,000 people at the young age of 7. Hall was a member of the Young People’s Teen Musical Theatre Company in San Francisco and at the age of 17, joined the national tour of ‘Cats’. When not on the Broadway stage, Lena performs with her band The Deafening. www.lenahall.com @LenaRockerHall @thedeafening
Kathy Najimy (director, actor, writer, activist, producer) is known for her memorable performances in over 25 films including Sister Act, RatRace & Hocus Pocus. Najimy is currently recurring on HBO’s VEEP. Also for TV, she appeared as a regular on The Big C, Numb3rs, for 14 seasons voiced “Peggy Hill” on the Emmy Award-winning King of the Hill & appeared for 3 seasons as Olive on NBC’s Veronica’s Closet. In the theater, Kathy starred as legendary Mae West in the hit Broadway play Dirty Blonde, and later at The Old Globe Theatre (Outer Critics Circle Best Actress). With Mo Gaffney, Najimy wrote and starred in The Kathy and Mo Show, her long-running feminist comedy off-Broadway play (Obie Award) that became two hit HBO specials. She is very proud to have been named Ms. Magazine WOMAN OF THE YEAR! Najimy is currently co-producing a project for HBO and created an idea for a Broadway Play for Lincoln Center Theater. Her solo show Lift Up Your Skirt is now being developed for the NYC stage, Kathy has been recognized with numerous honors for her enthusiastic work supporting women’s, girls, LGBT, AIDS, animal and reproductive rights. She is working towards abolishing the cruel horse carriage industry in NYC and lives here with her husband Dan Finnerty (The DanBand)& their 17-yr old daughter, singer/songwriter/ actor, Samia.
Thomas Roberts is an award-winning journalist who hosts MSNBC’s “Way Too Early” weekdays at 5:30am ET. He contributes regularly to “Morning Joe,” which airs on MSNBC weekdays from 6am-9am ET. Prior to joining the Morning Joe team, Thomas anchored MSNBC Live weekdays at 11am ET from December 2010 to January 2013. Roberts was made an official member of MSNBC’s dayside team in 2010. He resides in New York City with his husband, Patrick Abner, and their two dogs, Riley and Roxy.
Stephen Schwartz, Executive Producer
Stephen Schwartz wrote the music and lyrics for the current Broadway hits WICKED and PIPPIN, and also contributed music and/or lyrics to GODSPELL, THE MAGIC SHOW, THE BAKER’S WIFE, WORKING (which he also adapted and directed), RAGS, and CHILDREN OF EDEN. He has also worked in film, collaborating with Alan Menken on the songs for Disney’s ENCHANTED, POCAHONTAS and THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, and writing the songs for the DreamWorks animated feature THE PRINCE OF EGYPT.
The current president of the Dramatists Guild, Mr. Schwartz has been inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and has been given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Awards include three Academy Awards, four Grammy Awards, four Drama Desk Awards, and a tiny handful of tennis trophies.
For more information, click here.
Bruce Cohen, Executive Producer
Bruce Cohen is an Academy Award-winning producer of film, television, and theater. Cohen won the Best Picture Academy Award for producing AMERICAN BEAUTY (1999) along with Dan Jinks. He earned additional Best Picture nominations for MILK (2008) and SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK (2012).
Among the other films Bruce has produced is BIG FISH (2003), directed by Tim Burton. Bruce was a lead producer of the stage musical version of BIG FISH, on Broadway last fall. In television, Cohen was executive producer of the ABC series PUSHING DAISIES, and he was also executive producer of the CBS special MOVIES ROCK and was nominated for an Emmy in 2011 for producing the 83rd ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS.
Cohen is a National Board Member of the Producer’s Guild of America, having served two terms as vice president of motion pictures, and is on the Executive Committee of the Producer’s Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He is president of the Board of Directors of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, the group behind the recently successful Supreme Court case to have California’s Proposition 8 declared unconstitutional. He is married to Gabe Catone and they have a three year old daughter.
Alex Lacamoire, Musical Director
Alex won a Tony and a Grammy as the music supervisor, co-orchestrator and cast album producer of In The Heights.Other credits as music director, arranger and/or orchestrator: Wicked; Bring It On; 9 To 5 (Drama Desk and Grammy nominations); Annie (2011 B’way revival); Working (59E59); The People In The Picture; Legally Blonde; High Fidelity; Bat Boy: The Musical, Fly (Dallas Theater Center), and the 2001 National Tour of Godspell. He has also composed songs for Sesame Street on PBS.
Schele Williams, Director
Schele is the associate director for Motown the Musical. She also an adjunct professor at The New Studio on Broadway at NYU. Directing credits: Permanent Collection¬, His Eye is on the Sparrow – Human Race Theatre OH, Ben Vereen Concert Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C, From Broadway to Bourbon Street – Gershwin Theatre, Hairspray! – Weston Playhouse, Aida -Ogunquit Theatre MA, Piece- Palo Alto, Piece at NYMTF and NAMT. Schele produced and directed Defying Inequality a Celebrity Benefit for Marriage Equality and From Broadway to Bourbon Street both at the Gershwin Theatre. She is the recipient of two proclamations one from the city of New York for her work on Defying Inequality; the other from the City of Dayton for her direction of His Eye is on the Sparrow- the Ethel Waters story. She is the co founder of Blink Twice Productions.
Jayson Raitt, Producer
Jayson Raitt is an independent producer with extensive background in producing and developing new musical theatre. He produced Murder for Two in NYC and regionally; a national tour starts this October. He is currently represented on Broadway by Rock of Ages (5 Tony Award nominations including Best Musical). Recent producing credits include Love Makes the World Go ‘Round, a new musical featuring the songs of Bob Merrill (Funny Girl, Carnival, “How Much is that Doggie in the Window,” “Mambo Italiano”); a musical adaptation of Truman Capote’s A Christmas Memory; live television appearances by Christina Aguilera and dancers from the movie Burlesque on “Dancing with the Stars,” “The American Music Award,” and the UK’s “X Factor”; Vanities, A New Musical; concerts in Poland and Israel which were the backdrop for the documentary film 100 Voices: A Journey Home; Make Me A Song: The Music of William Finn Off-Broadway and in London; appearances by the cast of the movie Hairspray on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” “The Today Show,” and the “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade”; and Being Alive, an all-Black Stephen Sondheim revue created and directed by Billy Porter. Upcoming new musicals include Nine Wives (by Douglas J. Cohen and Dan Elish) and a musical adaptation of Great Expectations. Jayson spent seven years on the producing team at Pasadena Playhouse. He attended the University of Michigan and the UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television’s Producers Program.
Dustin Lance Black, Writer
Propper Daley, Uprising of Love Campaign Managers
Operating at the intersection of entertainment and public policy, Propper Daley partners with like-minded individuals, organizations, corporations and causes to create transformational social change. Propper Daley partners with clients who have the personal, financial and/or social capital to serve as catalysts and champions for meaningful causes and ideas. We work closely with these individuals, organizations, companies and causes to develop and implement unique “theories of change” and to design and execute highly leveraged engagement strategies and campaigns that are holistically inclusive of social media, nonprofit philanthropy, corporate partnerships and government relations.


When Niall Horan first auditioned for The X Factor in 2010, his Irish charm quickly won over the audience and, soon enough, the show’s guest judge Katy Perry. Intent on overcoming his nerves, the then 16-year-old singer paced around the stage and delivered a few lines of Ne-Yo’s 2006 hit “So Sick,” going on about how tired he is of love songs. It’s almost ironic in hindsight because songs about love – falling in and out of it, finding it and losing it just as quickly, yearning for something that even remotely resembles it – would soon become his signature as a singer-songwriter.
But Horan’s journey as a solo artist didn’t truly begin until six years after his audition. Instead of proceeding on the show alone, he was selected to continue in a new group called One Direction alongside four other auditionees: Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, and Liam Payne. What followed can only be described as six years of global pandemonium. All the while, Horan was sharpening his skills as a performer and songwriter in the pop arena – and what better place to do that than in a boy band whose entire discography is one big, complicated love story made up of bangers and ballads?
When One Direction embarked on a now-indefinite hiatus at the beginning of 2016, Horan was ready to stand on his own. That September, he released “This Town” as a preview to all that would come on his debut solo album Flicker, which arrived in October 2017. Under the spotlight on his own for the first time, Horan’s artistic versatility shined. Flicker introduced Horan as a hopeless romantic, while 2020’s Heartbreak Weather saw him evolve into a smooth charmer and lovelorn bachelor.
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With the release of his third studio album, The Show, Horan furthers his popcraft singles like “Heaven” and “Meltdown” and maps out his creative growth over the past seven years.
Ahead of his revamped and recharged return, we’re highlighting the best Niall Horan songs that carved out his place in pop, crowned him a top-tier collaborator, and found him expertly crafting those same love songs he once sang about being sick of.
Striking Out On His Own
(This Town; Slow Hands; Too Much to Ask)
Niall Horan was the first member of One Direction to launch his solo career following their hiatus announcement. The pressure was on, and anticipation was high as spectators wondered not only if he could command the spotlight without the company of his bandmates but also what that would sound like. Even under the watch of millions of fans, Horan introduced himself as a solo artist with an intimate single that blocked out the outside noise. “If the whole world was watching, I’d still dance with you,” he promised on his debut solo single, “This Town,” an acoustic ballad that reads as a tender love letter.
But just as listeners decided they had Horan figured out – painting him as the gentle lover type – he veered off-course with “Slow Hands,” the second single from his debut album Flicker. Setting the tone with a thumping bassline, the singer offered up a tongue-in-cheek portrait of lust and desire. “Slow Hands” reached No.11 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming his highest-charting single to date, with “This Town” trailing closely behind. Despite having cracked something of a recipe for success with “Slow Hands” and “This Town,” Horan was adamant about introducing a third perspective to his musical identity.
On “Too Much to Ask,” the third and final single from Flicker, Horan wasn’t love-struck or deep in late-night infatuation. Instead, he found himself heartbroken and alone. “My shadow’s dancing without you for the first time/My heart is hoping you’ll walk right in tonight,” he sings, wishing he could rewind the clock. Across those first three singles, Horan captured the complicated highs and lows of love with equal expertise while toying with his vocal range across soft, piano-led ballads and funk-inspired radio hits. And it was only the beginning.
Niall Horan - Slow Hands (Official Lyric Video)
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Lighting the Flame on ‘Flicker’
(Mirrors, Flicker, On the Loose)
Niall Horan buried the biggest chorus on his debut album on the record’s deluxe edition. On “Mirrors,” the penultimate song on Flicker, he captured the ethos of the entire record. “She looks into her mirror wishing someone could hear her, so loud,” he begins, teetering on a whisper: “And I need love/To hold me closer in the night/Just enough.” A second later, he belts out, “I need love,” with the full force of his voice with a euphoric release. Not ashamed to yearn for something more, he created a space to amplify emotions usually left in the dark.
Across Flicker, Horan constantly stokes this same flame. Finding love and keeping it requires the removal of ego from the equation. On “Flicker,” Horan isn’t afraid to beg and plead to save what he has. “Then I think of the start/And it echoes a spark/And I remember the magic electricity,” he sings as his relationship falls apart, trying to figure out where it all went wrong. The stripped-back ballad features a chilling vocal performance from Horan, who communicates heartbreak with raw sincerity.
While many of the best Niall Horan songs are about keeping love alive, he also knows when to throw in the towel. The cautionary tale “On The Loose” finds him persuading others to do the same. The grooving track opens Flicker, recounts the dangers of a serial heartbreaker. “She’ll run with your mind and pull you in tight/Then trade you in for something new,” he sings on the bridge, an edge of hysteria in his voice. As the remainder of the record would prove, Horan is a trusted source who knows a thing or two about having his heart crushed under the weight of love, reciprocated or not.
Niall Horan - Flicker (Official Acoustic)
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Weathering the Heartbreak
(Still; Put a Little Love on Me; Arms of a Stranger)
Niall Horan’s commitment to following every thread of love to the end of the line is admirable. On his sophom*ore album Heartbreak Weather, the singer leads with his heart even when that means putting himself at risk for another journey through the emotional wringer. “It’s killing me that we could go to war like this/But, I’m standing here with you, just trying to be honest,” he sings on “Still,” a song he wrote in only seven minutes with Mike Needle and producers Jamie Scott and Daniel Bryer. But wearing his heart on his sleeve hasn’t always worked out in Horan’s favor.
“Put a Little Love on Me” finds the singer trying to find his way forward in the aftermath of a breakup. Throughout the song, he searches for a new home for all the love he still has inside him. The ballad remains one of Horan’s strongest, his soaring vocal performance displaying a new side of his range.
Horan took this lyrical theme to new heights on Heartbreak Weather standout “Arms of a Stranger.” The record has a theatrical element, but Horan’s delivery is piercing as he confronts the person who broke his heart. When Horan enters storytelling mode, it’s impossible not to root for him. He’s the protagonist in a romantic film who deserves the grand happy ending.
Niall Horan - Arms Of A Stranger (Official Visualizer)
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The Hopeless Romantic
(Black and White; Heartbreak Weather; Heaven)
When Niall Horan addresses his fans, it’s always with a heartfelt welcome: “Hello, lovers.” It’s an extension of his identity as a hopeless romantic, willing to do whatever it takes to see the silver lining in every wrong match. Even when it isn’t going his way, Horan loves the concept of love and all the joy it can bring. On “Black and White,” a wedding-ready single from Heartbreak Weather, the singer takes his lover’s hand on the night of their first date and envisions their entire future together. “And there’s a vision I’ve been holdin’ in my mind,” he sings. “We’re sixty-five, and you ask/When did I first know, I always knew.”
But unlike the love stories he’s told on past records, the one at the center of “Black and White” doesn’t end in heartbreak or regret. Instead, it ends with a happily-ever-after, most commonly found in fairytales. On “Heartbreak Weather,” Horan captures the moment he first realized that love didn’t have to be as complicated as he’s known it to be.
The emotional evolution throughout Heartbreak Weather prepared Horan to enter his ultimate lover era on The Show. Across his first two records, Horan always tried to get over the past or envision a perfect future that was just out of his reach. But on his comeback single, “Heaven,” he completely releases that sense of control. “Even if our love starts to grow out of control/And you and me go up in flames/Heaven won’t be the same,” Horan sings, welcoming all of the potential romantic chaos with open arms.
Niall Horan - Heaven (Official Video)
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The Ultimate Duet Partner
(Our Song; What a Time; Moral of the Story)
Since his days of sharing the spotlight with four other musicians until One Direction ended, Niall Horan will rarely team up with other artists. Maren Morris, who appeared on “Seeing Blind” on Flicker, is the only person he has collaborated with on one of his own albums. But Horan’s romantic expertise has made him the perfect duet partner on records from other artists. During his guest appearances on songs from Anne-Marie, Julia Michaels, and Ashe, the singer has proved that not only can he play the role of the ex-lover, but he can also bring the necessary chemistry to build a convincing emotional connection to the story.
On “Our Song,” Horan and Anne-Marie deliver parallel perspectives of their breakups. They both wake up alone on Sunday mornings, comfortable on their own and leaving the relationship in the past where it belongs. He slips into a similar role alongside Michaels on “What a Time,” haunted by the memories of a relationship that came to an end.
Ashe ft. Niall Horan - Moral of the Story [LIVE for SiriusXM]
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Even in his guest role, singing lyrics written by another artist, the singer makes the story his own. When Horan joined Ashe on a remix of “Moral of the Story,” he quickly wrote his way into her pre-existing narrative. “It’s not funny how it changes/Ended up like strangers/And we burned down our paper house,” he sings, calling to mind the One Direction single “Night Changes,” as well as his own records, “Arms of a Stranger” and “Paper Houses” all at once. Horan’s ability to seamlessly weave these separate narratives together, as he has throughout all of his own work, speaks to his power as a pop storyteller.


Bharat Ane Nenu Movie First look poster and Teaser
Mahesh Babu’s SPYder that released during the Dusshera season failed at the box office leaving Mahesh fans in a big disappointment. Mahesh fans are currently waiting for the release of Bharat Ane Nenu on which they pinned a lot of hopes. Even Mahesh is expressing high confidence in the project as he already delivered a hit in the past with the director.The latest buzz is that the clarity on the film’s release date is yet to be out. On the other side, the makers wanted to concentrate on the film’s promotions very well so that they will not reduce the hype. The plan is to bring the first look of the film very soon. Most likely, the makers will release the first look on January 26th Morning 7AM 2018.
The makers will be launching the first look with four months gap from the release of the movie. The film is produced on DVV Entertainments banner. Kiara Advani is playing the leading lady in the movie. Mahesh will be seen as CM in the film.


In the midst of rumours that Nadine Luster and James Reid had split up, die-hard JaDine supporters are adamant that the separation *has not occurred* in any way! Until recently, they’ve only shared photos of the pair with their loved ones at Christmas and New Year’s celebrations.
During a December 31 meeting with MJ Felipe, James said that their group is throwing a festival to commemorate the new year with Nadine somewhere in Rockwell Makati, which was brought to the knowledge of fans. In the forthcoming ABS-CBN Teleserye Soulmate, James Reid and Nancy McDonie will also star together.
“She’s been using poems as inscriptions since 2013, guys,” another fan commented in response to others who were perplexed by Nadine’s ostensibly *cryptic* Instagram captions. LOL. She likewise shares enigmas and words from the tunes she composed and will release.”
Also see James Reid + Nancy’s New Series ‘Soulmate Project’ Will Be Modeled After US + Korean Dramas for more information.
James and Nadine originally revealed that they were dating in 2016, and in March 2019, they confirmed that they were living together. The pair has always been vocal about how much they feel for one another, describing how they were each other’s emotional support network during difficult times in their life in interviews! On February 11, 2020, the pair must commemorate their fourth anniversary.