Music

Taylor Swift is promoting “Renegade,” her new collaboration with Big Red Machine, by posting a collage on her Instagram, but fans are focused on who contributed one of the images in that collage.

The collage features a lyric from the song along with images of roses, a photo of Big Red Machine’s Aaron Dessner and Justin Vernon, and a picture of Taylor holding up what looks like a piece of fabric.  In the caption, Taylor gives credit for the collage to a photographer named Graham Tolbert, but specifically indicates that the photo of her was taken by James Reynolds.

So why is this a big deal?  Because James Reynolds is the name of the daughter of Taylor’s very good friends Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively.  Taylor used James’ name — and the names of the couple’s other two kids, Inez and Betty — for characters in her Grammy-winning album folklore.

Oh, also, James is only six years old.

“JAMES REYNOLDS IS 6 YRS OLD AND HAS ALREADY ACCOMPLISHED MORE IN HER LIFE THAN I CAN EVER INSPIRE (sic) TO,” tweeted one fan.

Another fan, quoting a lyric in “Renegade,” wrote “James is out here shooting professional cover art as a child. I really do need to get my s*** together!”

Yet another fan wondered, “how is a 6 year old more talented than me[?]”

James is quite the prodigy: She made her recording debut in 2017 on the song “Gorgeous,” on Taylor’s album Reputation.

ABC Audio has confirmed that the James Reynolds who Taylor credited is, indeed, THAT James Reynolds.

 

 

 

 

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In 2002, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II marked 50 years on the throne with a Golden Jubilee celebration featuring big pop stars. In 2012, she marked her Diamond Jubilee, 60 years on the throne, with another big bash with another bunch of pop stars.  Now stars are being lined up for next year’s Platinum Jubilee, during which Her Majesty will celebrate 70 years on the throne.

The British tabloid The Sun reports that the BBC is already booking huge stars to perform at its June 2022 Party at the Palace TV special, and the organizers have reached out to Ed Sheeran and Stevie Wonder to ask them if they’d take part, since they performed at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.  In addition, they’re trying to work something out with Elton John.

Apparently, Elton has a scheduling conflict with his farewell tour around that time, but a source says, “Whether it is something pre-recorded, like he did for…the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, or if he’ll be able to appear via a live stream, they want him on board.”

“Given the events of the past year and everything that has happened in the pandemic, the organizers want the Party at the Palace to be the biggest celebration of not only Her Majesty but of everything that is great about the UK,” the source adds, noting that viewers can expect “the best of the best when it comes to the line-up.”

Stars who played at the BBC’s Golden Jubilee special included Phil Collins, Bryan Adams, Annie Lennox, Queen, Elton, Eric Clapton, Tom Jones, Rod Stewart, Steve Winwood and Paul McCartney. 

In addition to Ed and Stevie, The Diamond Jubilee featured Elton, Paul, Tom Jones and Annie again, as well as Jessie J, Cliff Richard, Kylie Minogue and others.

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Chance the Rapper has partnered with Starbucks for their new “Made-Ready” campaign to promote their ready-made coffee drinks as outrageous orders keep overwhelming baristas in stores. 

Chance says their partnership coincided with his new-found interest in cinema, which he says is reflected in the campaign’s commercial.

“I don’t know how to describe it, but I’ve kind of just been self-educating myself in cinema and film and behind-the-camera work. And kind of going through this educational journey on Instagram,” he tells ABC Audio. “I guess somebody from Starbucks or from the creative agency, I don’t really know, saw that and was like, ‘Hey, we’d love to do a commercial in your spot about how the coffee is ready-made or made ready.”

Chance encourages others to be self-sufficient in the Starbucks “Made-Ready” campaign video, filmed at his House of Kicks production space in Chicago. 

“They’re like, we can make a video or an ad and kind of symbolizing the overlap between those two things, which is just that they’re both about having to get somewhere and being self-sufficient and relying on yourself, and it ended up being pretty cool,” Chance says. “I like the way the commercial came out a lot, actually. It was recorded at my office.”

This weekend, Chance is stepping away from his creative space to enjoy the Fourth of July with his wife, Kirsten, and their two daughters, five-year-old Kensli and one-year-old Marli.

“We’re going to go to a friend of the family’s BBQ in Chicago and kick it, get some food off the grill. [I] got some illegal fireworks, so it’s going up,” he says. 

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Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard has released a new song called “4th of July” with his band Painted Shield.

The track, which is available now as a digital download and via streaming services, is a meditation on “the moral injury experienced by many service members as they return home from conflicts abroad.”

“The lyrics to this song were inspired by the stories of friends of mine who have served in the military,” says vocalist Mason Jennings. “It touches on the recovery work needed to integrate back into civilian life after being in conflict.”

With “4th of July,” Painted Shield is also hoping to raise awareness for No One Left Behind, an initiative to protect Afghan interpreters from potential danger as the U.S. leaves Afghanistan.

A companion music video for the song has been posted on Painted Shield’s official YouTube channel. The clip includes footage of urban areas devastated by war.

Along with Gossard and Jennings, Painted Shield includes keyboardist/vocalist Brittany Davis and onetime Pearl Jam drummer Matt Chamberlain. The group released their self-titled debut album last fall.

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Mickey Guyton is no stranger to facing hate on social media, but when it comes to hateful messages directed at her infant son, Grayson, the “Black Like Me” star doesn’t mind naming names.

This week, Mickey shared a screenshot of a DM she received from a stranger on Instagram, calling baby Grayson “the ugliest child I’ve ever seen.”

“[Y]ou should take it and go back to the projects,” the message continued, in part.  “Nashville doesn’t need trash like you.”

“This deserves front and center attention,” Mickey explains in her caption, sharing the username of the person who “came for my child.” She shared the same image on Twitter, as well.

Several of Mickey’s fellow country stars quickly turned out in the comments section to voice their support. “The truth is these are the types of messages we see and get all the time. Good thing is you know who you are sis and your worth. These lost hearts can’t take your smile,” replied Jimmie Allen.

“So despicable,” added Morgane Stapleton, who is Chris Stapleton’s wife and backup singer. “Keep that pretty head of yours held high. You and your precious family are loved by so many!”

Mickey has long been vocal about her experiences with racism as a Black woman in country music. While pregnant with Grayson last fall, she also opened up about her fears regarding raising a Black son.

“I’ve seen racial injustice happen to my husband. I’ve had a ‘Karen’ falsely make claims against him and say some of the most heinous things, like the n-word. I’m growing this Black child in my belly that is going to have to face this,” Mickey told People at the time, adding of her then-unborn son, “I pray for him.”

 

 

 

 

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Miley Cyrus is ready to move on to a new property. 

The real estate website Dirt reports that Miley has sold her 1950s-era home in LA’s exclusive neighborhood of Hidden Hills for a whopping $7.2 million. 

It was just last year that Miley purchased the property for a bit under $5 million. She then worked with her mother, Tish Cyrus, to transform the interior of the six-bedroom, seven-bathroom estate from an all-white design to a more colorful aesthetic.

Photos taken by Architectural Digest earlier this year show a multi-colored seashell-shaped chair and blue couches in the black-walled den, and custom tiger face wallpaper made by Gucci in the powder room. Another room boasts leopard wallpaper, while Miley’s studio features an array of neon signs and a colorful motif on the wall. 

The 1.2 acre property also includes a lagoon-style swimming pool, an open-air pavilion with an outdoor kitchen and rolling green hills.

The superstar singer also owns a property in Studio City in LA and a 33-acre ranch just outside her native Nashville, Tennessee. 

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Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott received a custom Lamborghini from her mother, Patricia Elliott, on her 50th birthday Thursday.

The Grammy-winner took to Instagram to share a video of her new Black Lamborghini boasting with neon green accents, inside and out. 

“This is my birthday gift from my mother to me,” Missy says in the clip. “She says I work so so hard. So she bought me the Lambo SVJ Roadster.”

In the caption, the Supa Dupa Fly artist thanks her mother for her expensive gift and reflected on her decades-spanning career in the music industry. 

“Thank you, mommy, for my Bday gift. I Love you with all my HEART,” Missy writes. “I been in the industry over 25 years, and I have only been on three vacations in my whole career. So my mom said I work hard, so she brought me a SVJ Lambo Roadster. And I just want to say I am so grateful for all. Y’all BDAY wishes had me in tears. So filled with joy and all the blogs and my fans. I Love Yall!!!!! CancerSeason.”

Supa Dupa Fly helped set up Missy to become one of the most groundbreaking hip-hop artists of the last two decades. Her 1997 debut album received two Grammy nominations, including Best Rap Album and Best Rap Solo Performance for its Timbaland-produced track “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly).” 

 

 

 

 

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Looks like Ed Sheeran‘s “Bad Habits” lead to hit singles.

The star’s new track has just debuted at the top of the chart in his native U.K., and it’s his 10th number one there overall. Britain’s Official Charts Company points out that Ed is one of just nine artists who’ve had 10 number ones or more in the U.K.  He’s in pretty good company: Those artists include Eminem, who’s one of Ed’s heroes, as well as Madonna, The Beatles and Elvis Presley.

In a video celebrating his achievement, Ed says, “I want to say thank you so much to everyone that made this happen. I’ve been away for such a long time and I really, really don’t take this for granted, this is an amazing thing. Thank you for making me feel the love.”

Ed goes on to say he hopes “Bad Habits” is knocked out of number one next week by a 1996 song called “Three Lions,” which is the unofficial anthem of English soccer.  The song would likely hit number one next week if England wins the European Football Championship.

“We’re going to win the Euros. It’s coming home!” Ed predicts.

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