Earlier this month U2 was the recipient of the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors, and fans will finally get to see the celebration Wednesday, when the ceremony airs on CBS at 8 p.m.
At the event, the band is saluted by actors Sean Penn and Sacha Baron Cohen, who stays in character as Kazakhstan journalist Borat. The night also features several performances, with Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder performing two U2 tracks, “Elevation” and “One,” and Hozier, Brandi Carlile, Sheryl Crow and others performing “Walk On.”
And U2 isn’t the only act being honored. The special also features tributes to Gladys Knight, George Clooney, Amy Grant and conductor Tania León, with performances from The Highwoman, BeBe & CeCe Winans and Michael W Smith, Garth Brooks, Mickey Guyton and more.
Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl, which transformed the animated film into a full theatrical production, is streaming now on Disney+, and the cast is already buzzing about what could possibly be next. Broadway, maybe?
ABC Audio asked Adassa, who played the all-hearing Dolores, if she’s open to reprising the role should an Encanto musical make it onto the Great White Way. “I’m so there right now. Let’s go!” she responded.
Sally Wood, who served as the showrunner and executive producer of Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl, hinted, “We all wanted to take the show on tour.”
And while it’s still unknown if Encanto will join movies like Aladdin or The Lion King on Broadway, Wood spoke of the amount of effort that went into translating the fantastical film to a stage-ready production.
“It was quite hard to fit in,” she admitted, but revealed she cracked the code after thinking of building Casita, the Madrigal family’s magicalhouse, on stage. Then came “many hours on Zooms at very ridiculous times” with the cast, crew and Disney Animation personnel “to make sure that what we were creating would keep [the movie’s] authenticity.”
“I’ve never in my whole career worked on a show where every department worked so closely and was so proud of what we achieved at the end,” added Wood.
Adassa praised the production’s “attention to detail” and said she was so “impressed with the vision that they had.” She added people should be amazed by the stage adaptation because of how it captures the spirit of Encanto “in such an effortless way.”
Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl, which is a recording of the November concert events that reunited the original voice cast to perform songs from the film, is streaming now on Disney+.
Mariah Carey is still processing her latest Billboard milestone. Thanks to her hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You” scoring another week at #1, she is now the first and only artist to lead the chart for 90 weeks.
Mariah celebrated the new milestone on Instagram, writing, “I can’t even handle this news.. I’m jumping up and down in the snow..!”
She added that as she’s celebrating in her element, her dog Cha Cha is “swimming around” while her other pet, Mutley,is “howling like a kid running around in circles feeling our energy.”
Billboard confirmed “All I Want for Christmas Is You” scored its 11th week at #1 on the Hot 100, which cemented her 90th week overall on top of the chart. In addition, she became the second artist behind Boyz II Men to have had three separate singles dominate the chart for 11 or more weeks.
Mariah also enjoyed a fun new milestone when it comes to streaming. She beat a record set by Adele for the most single-day streams on Spotify — on Christmas Eve, no less.
The Independent reports British listeners blasted “All I Want for Christmas” 21.273 million times over a 24-hour span, which broke the record previously set by Adele’s “Easy on Me.” That song was streamed 19.747 million times in a single day back in 2021.
If you’re looking for the Kurt Cobain of the 21st century, Courtney Love would refer you to one Lana Del Rey.
In an interview on Marc Maron‘s WTF podcast, the Hole frontwoman and widow of the late Nirvana frontman declares, “Lana and Kurt are the only true musical geniuses I’ve ever known.”
As for what makes Cobain and Del Rey geniuses, Love explains that “they can Spielberg anything,” which she says is demonstrated by how Kurt interpreted Meat Puppets for Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged performance and how Lana “feminizes” Allen Ginsberg‘s “Howl” with her spoken word rendition of the famed poem.
“She’s got the integrity that Kurt had,” Love adds of Del Rey.
“By the way, [R.E.M.‘s Micheal] Stipe, [U2‘s] Bono — yes, these are people that I know and love,” she continues. “[Green Day‘s] Billie Joe [Armstrong], sure. But Lana? She’s got a magic thing.”
Bob Marley’s grandson Joseph “Jo Mersa” Marley passed away Tuesday at the age of 31. A rep confirmed his death to Rolling Stone, although no official cause of death was given.
Earlier reports by journalist Abka Fitz-Henley claimed that Joe Mersa was found unresponsive in his vehicle, with TMZ reporting his death was asthma-related.
Joe Mersa was the son Stephen Marley, one of Bob’s 11 children, and leaves behind a wife and a daughter. He was a singer in his own right, releasing the EP Comfortable in 2014 and another EP, Eternal, in 2021. He also appeared on his father’s 2016 song “Revelation Party,” which appeared on the album Revelation Part 2: The Fruit of Life.
(NOTE LANGUAGE) When it comes to celebrity scandals of 2022, there’s arguably nothing bigger than what was dubbed the “Slap Heard ‘Round the World.” The sight of one of the biggest stars of the world, Will Smith, slapping and then cursing out one of the most famous comics on Earth, Chris Rock, would have been news had it happened at a pub, let alone at the Academy Awards.
That said, there were other stars making headlines for all the wrong reasons this year, so let’s do what their publicists wish we wouldn’t and take a look back.
Ezra Miller’s banner year:
The Justice League star kicked off 2022 with a bizarre video on Instagram, in which the actor, who uses they/them pronouns, referred to themselves as “the Bengal Ghouls [and] Mad Goose Wizard,” and sent a message “for the Beulaville chapter of the North Carolina Ku Klux Klan,” in which he invited them to “kill yourself with your own guns … Otherwise, keep doing what you’re doing … and we’ll do it for you.” The video was later deleted.
In March, then again in April, Miller was arrested for allegedly causing trouble in Hawaii. In March, the actor pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct, and was ordered to pay a $500 fine and stay away from Margarita Village in Hilo, Hawaii, after a scrum there; in April, Miller was arrested for second-degree assault for allegedly hurling a chair at a woman at a get-together.
In May, Miller allegedly broke into a Vermont home and stole booze; the actor was officially charged with felony burglary in August.
In June, attorney and activist Chase Iron Eyes and his wife, Sara Jumping Eagle, filed court documents in Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Court alleging that Miller has been “physically and emotionally abusing,” as well as “psychologically manipulating, physically intimidating, and endangering the safety and welfare” of their daughter, Tokata Iron Eyes. The parents accused the actor of grooming her beginning when she was 13.
In August, Vermont State Police showed up to Miller’s home in search of a mother and three young children who were reportedly staying there against the wishes of the children’s father. The trio was nowhere to be found.
Later in the month, the actor said they were seeking treatment for “complex mental health issues” after exhibiting alarming behavior that led to a series of arrests and accusations. Industry insiders sniped it was a play to save his forthcoming Flash movie.
Will Smith slaps Chris Rock
While the action reverberated throughout the year, the notorious Oscars slap happened back on March 27, in front of a stunned, star-studded audience at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre. A joke Rock made as a presenter at the expense of Jada Pinkett Smith‘s bald head initially drew a laugh from Will, which made his striding to the stage to confront the comic seem like it was the beginning of a bit. However, the powerful slap, which Rock later said left him without hearing for a spell, was nothing to joke about. Neither was Will screaming, “Keep my wife’s name out your f****ing mouth!” twice. Smith went on to ignore the incident when picking up his Best Actor trophy for King Richard, but in a subsequent apology, he accepted a 10-year ban from Academy events.
The Johnny Depp/Amber Heard defamation case:
May and June were all about the U.S. headline-grabbing defamation case between Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard. The former Pirates of the Caribbean series star sued his ex over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which the Aquaman actress wrote about experiencing physical and sexual abuse.
As the trial played out, the public saw their tumultuous marriage writ large, and saw Depp testify how it was Heard who abused him both physically and psychologically. Then there was the testimony that gave the world #AmberTurd for the actress’s alleged spite-befouling of a bed.
The jury sided with Depp in June, ruling Heard defamed him to hurt his career and boost her own. Depp was awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, but the latter was capped to $350,000 due to Virginia law. Heard was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages for statements made by Depp’s former attorney, but was awarded no punitive damages. Months later, she filed an appeal of the verdict.
In December, Heard reportedly settled with Depp for $1 million, and noted she was dropping her plans to appeal. The actress noted she had “lost faith in the American legal system,” and said of the payment, “…This is not an act of concession. There are no restrictions or gags with respect to my voice moving forward.” Depp’s team vowed to give the money to charity.
Kanye’s meltdown:
Like a train wreck in slow-motion, Ye‘s flame-out took time to get going, but in the end, the destruction was arguably absolute.
The first months of the year saw Kanye lamenting on social media and elsewhere about the state of his split with Kim Kardashian and the custody arrangements with the mother of his four children.
In February, Ye’s music career was still in full swing: His 21-track Donda 2 album was released on his own branded Stem Player. He claims to have sold more than $2 million worth of the devices.
Later in the year, Ye made headlines for taking social media shots at “Skete” — or Pete Davidson, whom Kim began seeing romantically. One of these posts, and a video of an animated version of Kanye murdering Davidson, got Ye temporarily suspended from Instagram in March for violating the platform’s harassment policy. Apparently Davidson thought the diss track was hilarious.
After countless disses of the celebrity couple online, Kim and Pete called it quits in August, which Kanye celebrated online.
In September, following the death of Queen Elizabeth, Ye promised he was ending all his grudges, but later announced his YEEZY company was terminating its partnership with Gap.
Also in September, West gave an interview with ABC News, in which he talked about his relationship with God; his school, the Donda Academy; and fatherhood. At this point, despite his social media behavior, he was being hailed in some circles as something of a maverick mogul.
By October, however, things took a turn; Ye invited controversy by wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt during Paris Fashion Week. He was escorted out of Skechers offices in LA after an “unauthorized” visit. And he said he was going “Death Con 3” on Jewish people who had wronged him. While he quickly apologized for the comment, as the fall wore on, he made a series of other antisemitic comments, culminating with him claiming to controversial media figure Alex Jones that he admired Hitler.
After claiming he couldn’t be canceled, he was: his agency CAA cut ties with him, as did Adidas, losing him his billionaire status, and making him the target of late-night comedians’ jokes and of the Anti-Defamation League.
Jason Aldean traded in his cowboy hat for a long white Santa beard this holiday season. He and his wife, Brittany, stopped by their local gas station to pump some free gas for unsuspecting drivers.
Dressed as Santa and Mrs. Claus, Jason and Brittany hung out by the pumps looking to spread a little holiday cheer. They had just one request before filling up people’s gas tanks: “Shake that a** for free gas,” read a sign the county star couple held up.
Brittany shared video of the holiday giveaway on her social media, including clips of the responses they got from the folks who walked away from the pumps with a free tank.
“I just got back from college so this definitely helps,” one person told the couple. “I just started working again so I haven’t gotten a paycheck yet.”
“Giving gas, that’s awesome stuff,” another said.
After one driver’s gas tank only needed a top-off, Brittany presented him with a $100 bill to go towards his next trip to the pump. “I drive from here to Nashville almost every day for work,” he explained, stressing how much the holiday cash would help him cover his travel expenses.
For their own holiday celebrations, Jason and Brittany took their two young kids, Memphis and Navy, on a ski vacation earlier this month. Brittany documented the occasion on her social media.
(WASHINGTON) — New York Rep.-elect George Santos is facing mounting criticism from his future Democratic colleagues for fabricating parts of his biography — criticism that is coming from some of Santos’ fellow Republicans as well, though many in his party have not commented on the controversy, and some have defended him.
“GOP Congressman-elect George Santos, who has now admitted his whopping lies, should resign,” Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., tweeted on Monday, pushing House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to call a vote to expel Santos if he does not step down.
Texas Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro also tweeted that Santos should resign or Congress should expel him, which would require a two-thirds vote, and that his actions should be investigated by authorities.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the incoming House minority leader, spoke sharply of Santos last week.
“He appears to be a complete and utter fraud. His whole life story made up, and he’s going to have to answer that question: Did you perpetrate a fraud on the voters?” Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters.
“It’s an open question to me as to whether this is the type of individual that the incoming majority should welcome to Congress. That’s a question from Kevin McCarthy at this point in time,” Jeffries said.
ABC News has reached out to Republican House leaders Kevin McCarthy, Elise Stefanik and Steve Scalise for comment multiple times and they have not responded.
Last week, New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office said she was looking into a number of issues raised about Santos.
In a series of interviews, Santos — who initially pushed back on scrutiny of his biography — admitted to lying about or exaggerating parts of his background, including where he went to school and worked and past claims about his Jewish ancestry.
Santos apologized and sought to play down the discrepancies as “embellishing.”
“I am not a criminal,” he told The New York Post on Monday. “This [controversy] will not deter me from having good legislative success. I will be effective. I will be good.”
Republican lawmakers have largely remained silent on Santos. However, fellow New York Rep.-elect Nick LaLota released a statement asking the ethics committee to investigate.
“House Republicans like me are eager to be sworn in and focus on our commitment to America and our respective districts. Yet over the last few weeks, I have heard from countless Long Islanders how deeply troubled they are by the headlines surrounding George Santos,” LaLota said.
“As a Navy man who campaigned on restoring accountability and integrity to our government, I believe a full investigation by the House Ethics Committee and, if necessary, law enforcement, is required,” he said.
Another incoming Republican New York representative, Anthony D’Esposito, also released a statement condemning Santos’ actions but did not echo a call for an ethics investigation.
Nassau County Republican Committee Chairman Joseph G. Cairo Jr., in Santos’ district, said in a statement to ABC News on Tuesday that Santos “has a lot of work to do to regain the trust of voters and everyone who he represents in Congress.”
“I am deeply disappointed in Mr. Santos, and I expected more than just a blanket apology,” Cairo said.
He said that Santos’ contrition could be earned through a conservative legislative record.
“He must do the public’s will in Washington. Residents want him to deliver tax relief and pass laws that will make our neighborhoods and our nation safer,” Cairo said. “What’s more, George Santos will have to continually prove that he has learned his lesson.”
Another set of musicians were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, but before it actually happened there was at least one unexpected issue.
After the initial list of nominees was announced, Dolly Parton, who was included on the list, threw things for a loop when in February she requested her name be removed from the ballot. But the Hall refused, noting her music “impacted a generation of young fans and influenced countless artists that followed.” She eventually agreed to stay on the ballot, and it’s a good thing she did.
When this year’s class was finally announced, not only did Dolly make it, but so did Lionel Richie, Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Carly Simon, Judas Priest and Eminem. In addition, duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were chosen to receive the Musical Excellence Award, while Harry Belafonte receivedthe Early Influence Award. The late R&B singer Sylvia Robinson was chosen for the Ahmet Ertegun Award.
The induction ceremony was held in November in Los Angeles. Here are some of the evening’s many highlights:
–Duran Duran performed “Hungry Like the Wolf,” “Girls on Film” and “Ordinary World.” Fans were hoping to see the band reunite with original guitarist Andy Taylor, but instead singer Simon Le Bon read a letter Taylor wrote explaining he couldn’t be there because he’s been battling stage 4 metastatic prostate cancer.
—Sheryl Crow paid tribute to Benatar and Giraldo, who then treated the crowd to “All Fired Up,” “Love Is a Battlefield” and “Heartbreaker.”
–Eurythmics reunited at the ceremony for their first performance since 2019, performing “Would I Lie to You,” “Sweet Dreams” and “Missionary Man.”
—Carly Simon missed the ceremony, as she was grieving the loss of her two sisters. She was celebrated by Sara Bareilles, who performed “Nobody Does it Better,” and Olivia Rodrigo, who performed “You’re So Vain.” Alanis Morissette was supposed to take part in the Carly tribute but dropped out at the last minute, hinting it had to do with “anti-woman sentiment.”
—Judas Priest reunited with former bandmates K.K. Downing and Les Binks for a performance that included “Breaking the Law” and “Living After Midnight.” During speeches they were joined by guitarist Glenn Tipton, who retired from touring full time in 2018 due to Parkinson’s disease.
—Eminem, who was inducted by Dr. Dre, performed a medley of hits, including “My Name Is,” “Sing for the Moment” with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and “Stan,” with Ed Sheeran singing the chorus and playing guitar.
–Richie treated the crowd to “Hello” and brought out a special guest, Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl,for “Easy,” ending his set with his classic “All Night Long.”
—Pink helped induct Dolly, then joined Dolly and Crow for a performance of “Jolene,” which also included this year’s fellow inductees Benatar, Annie Lennox, Le Bon and Judas Priest’s Rob Halford.
–Finally, the night ended with a classic HOF jam, with Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp paying tribute to the late Jerry Lee Lewis with a medley of his hits.
Jennifer Lopez is sharing details about her first Christmas with her husband, Ben Affleck.
In her newsletter, On the JLo, the singer and actress, 53, shared how the holiday went with hers and Affleck’s blended family and this year’s Christmas theme.
“I’ve been hunkering down at home (and loving it) since I wrapped my last movie,” Lopez began. “I like to create a theme for every holiday. I wrote a song called ‘Hummingbird’ for my new album, This is Me… Now.”
She went on, “To me, hummingbirds are messengers of love. They’re very agile — can fly forward, backward, and up and down. They’re also the fastest bird but they always have time to stop, eat something sweet and smell the roses. I identify with them, but more than anything, whenever I see one, I feel like it’s a sign from God that everything is going to be OK.”
“So, I decided this year, that the hummingbird would be a perfect theme,” Lopez added. “We have blended families, doubled the people, doubled the fun, doubled the love, doubled the presents and tripled the chaos!! I wanted to have a tree in the house that was a hummingbird tree, reminding us that everything done in love and with love will always be OK.”
Lopez noted this was the first time in a while that she was able to get together with family and friends she hadn’t seen in so long.
Following their engagement and breakup in the early 2000s, Lopez and Affleck tied the knot in April in Las Vegas after rekindling their relationship following Lopez’s breakup with then-fiancé Alex Rodriguez.
