Music

Can Ed Sheeran take the heat? The singer appears on the latest episode of First We Feast’s popular web series, Hot Ones, where he chows down on progressively spicier wings as he answers questions from host Sean Evans.

During the interview, Ed recounts his unique path to fame. He says at 17, he was playing acoustic shows around London without much success, but things changed when he played a poetry show in Los Angeles.

“I was British, the only white guy in the room, with a guitar, with like crazy hair and I was like, ‘F***, I don’t think today’s gonna go well,'” he recalls. “I stood up on stage and I played the songs and it was the best reaction I got from any show.”

He continues, “So from there, when I got back to England I was like, I’m not gonna do any more acoustic nights. I’m gonna do comedy nights, I’m gonna do rap nights, I’m gonna do jazz nights…And within a year, it like kicked off.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Ed answers some questions from frequent collaborator Benny Blanco, discusses working with Eminem and 50 Cent and talks about the time he brought his pal Courteney Cox to his local Tesco supermarket.

In the end, he makes it through the hot wings lineup — but not without the help of some water and almond milk.

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It’s been 25 years since LeAnn Rimes released her career-making debut album, Blue, when she was just 13 years old. Now, in a new conversation with Kelleigh Bannen on Apple Music Hits, LeAnn says she stands behind who she was as an artist back then.

“When I was younger, people would say, ‘Oh, you’re really going to be able to sing amazing when you get older, because you’ll have this life experience to connect with it,’” she remembers, adding that the sentiment offended her at the time.

Now, she says, she can understand what they meant, but she’s still proud of the way she tapped into adult emotions as a young performer.

“I was able to really dig into emotion I didn’t know where to place as a kid, and act in a lot of ways,” LeAnn explains. “Then, as I grew, there was real truth to the power behind what I was singing.”

LeAnn goes on to say that only recently has she been able to fully appreciate who she was as a young artist.

“I really respect myself as a kid…I don’t think I’ve had the respect I have for her now until recently,” the singer reveals. “Because I was just in survival mode for 25 years and now being out of survival mode and being able to reflect…I’m kind of always looking to reconnect with what it was about her that was so clear and so powerful.”

Blue won LeAnn two Grammy Awards, including Best Female Country Performance for the title track, her version of the 1958 Bill Mack song “Blue.”

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Many are concerned about Wale after he shared that he was “extremely sick” on his Instagram Story Wednesday. 

According to HotNewHipHop, the “Angles” rapper told his four million followers that he will be taking a social media hiatus to focus on his health and well being. 

“I am out of commission. I been extremely sick since Saturday. I’ve missed many calls and texts,” Wale wrote. “Thank you to everybody who called wit[h] genuine concern. I ain’t sure how long I’ll be down but this…aint slight. Soon as I can come back strong, I’ll be back strong. As for now management will run my socials. Much love, see yall soon – Wale.”

Wale didn’t provide any details on his illness, but we wish him a speedy recovery so he can get back to sharing new music from his upcoming album, Folarin 2.

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Friendship truly never ends: The Spice Girls have taken to social media to celebrate today’s 25th anniversary of “Wannabe.”

“25 years! Can you believe it?!,” Mel C, aka Sporty Spice wrote. “With the help of our amazing fans this song catapulted us on our incredible journey, so much love and thanks to you guys today, the wonderful [‘Wannabe’ co-writers] Matt [Rowe] and Biff [Stannard], and my darling Spice Girls.”

She added, “So many memories! Happy Birthday Wannabe! Can’t wait until we Zig a zig ahh again!!!”

Geri Halliwell, aka Ginger Spice, posted two images of the group and one of a gold ring.  She wrote, “25 years of ‘Wannabe.’ Wow. The song that changed the lives of five girls from Britain. The first picture was taken in my back garden…we were all listening to the radio together that day we went to number 3 in the charts!!”

Ginger continued, “The black and white picture was from our first ever photoshoot! And…I bought a gold ring for each of the girls when we first got together, as a symbol of our friendship. It’s a special bond that continues to stand the test of time. I’m so proud of everything we have achieved together, girls.”

Emma Bunton, aka Baby Spice, wrote, “Zigazigahhhhhh!!! Feeling very emotional, what an amazing 25 years it has been. Thanks to our wonderful fans for making 5 girls’ dreams come true, loving the songs that we wrote, copying our dance routines and embracing our individuality!”

Even Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice, who sat out the group’s sold-out 2019 stadium tour, posted a message, writing, “I can’t believe it’s been 25 years since Wannabe was released…the song that changed everything!”

Mel B, aka Scary Spice, has yet to weigh in.

 

 

 

 

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Lil Baby is making a name for himself in the music industry, which brings criticism from others about his music.

On Thursday, the 26-year-old My Turn rapper caught wind of a video clip from influencer Logan Paul criticizing his music last year during an episode of his podcast, Impaulsive. 

“Lil Baby, he’ll pop up on my Spotify…I’m scrolling through, and I…can’t get away from Lil Baby songs,” Paul said during a discussion about the saturation of hip-hop artists.. “I’m all for new artists but this one in particular I have no idea what he’s saying. I have none. And it all sounds the same, his tone is the same. It’s all the same. I give him a year.”

Paul’s comments lit a fire under the Grammy-nominated rapper to simply make more millions from his music.  Baby responded by tweeting, “Logan who?” before adding, “More like give em a year to have 100ms.”

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Hootie & the Blowfish are here to help you stoke your ’90s nostalgia and get a tan at the same time.

The group is hosting HootieFest: The Big Splash, a “destination concert vacation event” that will take place at Moon Palace Cancún, Mexico from January 26-29.  The four-day event will include three headlining performances from Hootie on the beach, as well as daytime entertainment and nightly concerts by Barenaked Ladies, Toad the West Sprocket, Spin Doctors, Better than Ezra, Sister Hazel, Blues Traveler, and Toadies.

Pool parties, tequila and beer tastings, beach games and yoga sessions are also part of the entertainment at the event, which is sort of like being on one of those music cruises, except you stay in one place.

“We were blown away by the response from fans during our last tour,” Hootie singer Darius Rucker says in a statement, referring to their 2019 Group Therapy tour.  “It was so special to be back on stage together and to know that people still love the music as much as we do. What better way to keep that celebration going than in Mexico!?”

Packages including accommodations, concert access, transportation and more go on sale Thursday, July 15 at 1 p.m. ET  A 24-hour pre-sale starts Wednesday a 1 p.m. ET. For more information, visit Hootiefest.com.

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Lil’ Mo tapped T-Pain and rapper and radio personality Fatman Scoop for assistance on her new single, “Shining Star.” 

T-Pain adds his signature Auto-Tune to the upbeat track and mentions buying a special woman a Hermès Birkin bag. Fatman Scoop keeps the energy going with ad-libs, while Lil’ Mo lyrically describes herself as a woman who lives unapologetically.

“She glows, she glitter, she shine / She sexy, she gorgeous, she fine / She loyal she don’t break no bonds/ Pretty girls like her hard to find,” Mo sings on the bridge. 

According to Lil’ Mo’s Instagram, her son, Justin, lent background vocals to “Shining Star,” which she calls a “summer anthem.” “Ladies this GLOW is contagious. Come shine,” Mo concludes the post.

Lil’ Mo also shared a video clip of her appearance on N.O.R.E‘s Drink Champs podcast. She discusses the high and lows of her career, including meeting Missy Elliot and signing to Elektra Records, which released her 2001 debut album, Based on a True Story. 

“Cuz Missy can really sing,” Mo says in a clip, shared on Instagram. “She was just like, ‘yo, I’m bout to go on tour. You trying to go?’ and I was like yea. I quit beauty school literally right on the spot. I was like I ain’t going back. I told them I was gone be famous anyway.”

Lil’ Mo’s episode of Drink Champs airs tonight at 10 p.m. EST on Revolt TV.

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Kane Brown joins a star-studded list of presenters as part of the upcoming 2021 ESPYS Presented by Capital One, the awards show that celebrates the best in sports.

Kane’s the sole presenter from the country genre, but he’s not the only musician: Rapper DaBaby will also hand out an award. Other celebrity presenters include actor Taye Diggs, YouTube star Dude Perfect, actor/comedian Tracy Morgan, Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts and many more.

The 2021 ESPYS, which will be hosted by actor/producer Anthony Mackie, is set to air on ABC on July 10. The show will take place in New York City.

Kane’s passion for sports has been well documented over the years. Specifically, when it launches in October, his 2021 Blessed & Free Tour will highlight his love of basketball. The tour route includes stops at all 29 NBA arenas, making Kane the first-ever country star to hit each one on a headlining tour.

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Dua Lipa is ready to take her talents to the big screen.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the singer has signed on to make her acting debut in a new spy thriller called Argylle.

Dua will be in good company for the Matthew Vaughn-directed flick. She’ll join an all-star cast including Henry Cavill, Sam Rockwell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O’Hara, John Cena and Samuel L. Jackson.

THR reports that not only will Dua show off her acting skills for the first time, she’ll be bringing her tried and true music skills to film as well, providing original music for the title track and score.

The film is based on an upcoming book by Ellie Conway about “the world’s greatest spy Argylle as he is caught up in a globe-trotting adventure.” It’s planned as the first of three films in a franchise.

Argylle will begin shooting this August in Europe.

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The CMT Music Awards show is going through changes in 2022.

Variety reports that the show will broadcast on April 3, 2022, which is a departure from its usual June airing. The announcement comes just a couple weeks after Viacom revealed that the annual country music awards show is moving from its original home of CMT to CBS, the former’s much larger sister broadcast network.

Of course, April is the month that CBS formerly aired another country music awards show: The ACM Awards. The ACMs most recently aired on CBS in April 2021, but the network and the Academy subsequently parted ways after failing to agree on terms for a deal renewal. 

There’s no word yet on whether the ACMs will keep its usual April broadcast slot or move to another time of year in order to avoid competition with the rescheduled spring CMT Awards. It is also not yet known where the ACMs will air next year, though per Variety, the Academy has reportedly been in negotiations with NBC.

Meanwhile, the CMT Awards are riding the momentum of the success of their 2021 show, which saw a ten-percent increase in total viewership on CBS and was the top social program of the night across TV.

ViacomCBS has also announced a string of special programming, dubbed “Country Music Week,” to surround the next CMT Awards.

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