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Essence to honor Nia Long, Quinta Brunson and more at the Black Women in Hollywood Awards

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Actresses Nia Long, Quinta Brunson, Aunjanue Ellis and Chanté Adams will be honored at the 15th Anniversary Black Women in Hollywood Awards, ESSENCE announced on Wednesday.

The highly coveted event, hosted this year by “SnowFall” star Damson Idris, honors Black women for their extraordinary achievements in the entertainment industry.

“For a decade and a half, ESSENCE has spotlighted and honored the Black women who curate and shape Hollywood and the entertainment ecosystem from a variety of roles and positions. We are proud to again commemorate their achievements at our signature awards luncheon and throughout the year,” ESSENCE CEO Caroline Wanga said.

The star-studded affair was commemorated in ESSENCE ’s March/April print issue, which hit stands on Tuesday and features newly-married couple Niecy Nash and Jessica Betts.

“We proudly continue celebrating actresses championing for authentic portrayals and diverse storytelling across film, television and streaming,” said Cori Murray, ESSENCE deputy editor. “Much like our theme, the Black Cinematic Universe, the power in our presence is infinite.”

The Black Women in Hollywood Awards falls during Oscar week and is part of the larger ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood celebration. The awards will air as a virtual experience on Monday, March 28 from 7-10 p.m. on EssenceStudios.com.

The third annual Essence Hollywood House, an experience developed to provide compelling content and conversation, will be held on March 25.

Sean Paul to head back on the road this spring for North American tour

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Sean Paul is ready to hit the road after a two-year pause and, on Wednesday, unveiled his multi-stop Scorcha Tour that kicks off later this month.

The “Temperature” rapper kicks off his 10-stop tour on March 11 at Busch Gardens in Tampa Bay, Florida. He will then hit the nation’s largest metro areas, such as New York City and Las Vegas, before wrapping on May 29 at California’s Monterey Fairgrounds.

This tour fulfills the promise Sean made to fans about returning to the road by the spring. Prior to this, he hadn’t left Jamaica since the pandemic all but shut down the touring industry and halted his plans.

“While a digital platform may keep you connected, it is no substitute for being physically interactive with fans,” the Dancehall star said in a statement.

The Scorcha Tour will support Sean’s upcoming eighth studio album of the same name, which is the follow-up to his Grammy-nominated album, Live N Livin. The tour also coincides with the 20th anniversary of Sean’s breakthrough album, Dutty Rock, which produced the hits “Baby Boy,” “Gimme The Light” and “Get Busy.”

Tickets go on sale this Friday, March 4, at 10 a.m. ET on Sean Paul’s official website.

Catch Richard Marx tonight on ABC’s ‘The Goldbergs’

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

If you miss Richard Marx’s amazing 1980s hair, be sure to tune into ABC’s The Goldbergs tonight.

Richard plays himself in the episode, but since the show is set in the ’80s, he’s sporting a wig that resembles the long feathered ‘do he sported during that decade. You can see him in a clip that he’s posted on his socials in advance of the episode, which is also the show’s 200th.

In the clip, Richard is seen talking to Beverly, played by Wendi McLendon-Covey. He asks Wendi for a check for his performance, which he says he “kinda nailed.”

A reluctant Beverly replies, “Well, I’ll tell ya what. I’m gonna write down a number, and you can either take it or leave it.” She hands him a piece of paper.

“That is not a number. And why would I do that to myself?” Richard asks after reading it.

“Oh, boo hoo, write a sad song about it,” snaps Beverly.

“Oh, I will,” replies Richard. “And it’ll be a number one smash hit!”

It’s not clear how Richard and his performance fits into the plot of the episode, which is called “The Wedding.” It involves Geoff, played by Sam Lerner, scrambling to fix things after he finds out no one made a deposit on the wedding venue, and an approaching storm that could jeopardize the entire event. It airs tonight at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Happy Birthday to you, do-doo, do-doo: the late Lou Reed was born 80 years ago today

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

It’s been over eight years since Lou Reed took his last walk on the wild side, but had he lived, the influential rocker would have celebrated his 80th birthday today.

Reed came to fame in the late 1960s as the leader, rhythm guitarist and main songwriter of the New York City-based band The Velvet Underground, whose songs explored dark themes such as drugs, kinky sex and domestic violence in the midst of the “Flower Power” era.

Although the group enjoyed little commercial success, their edgy and poetic tunes and sometimes experimental music inspired countless bands and artists that followed in their wake, including David Bowie, Roxy Music, Patti Smith and many notable punk, New Wave and alternative rock acts.

The band’s 1967 debut, The Velvet Undeground & Nico, was ranked #23 on Rolling Stone‘s 2020 list of “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”

Reed left The Velvet Underground in 1970 and forged a critically acclaimed solo career that spanned over 40 years.

Lou’s best-known solo effort was 1972’s Transformer, which was co-produced by Bowie. The album peaked at #29 on the Billboard 200 and included Reed’s signature tune “Walk on the Wild Side,” which reached #16 on the Billboard Hot 100, as well as “Perfect Day.”

Two of Reed’s solo albums were certified gold for sales of 500,000 in the U.S. — the popular 1974 live album Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal and 1990’s New York, which featured the modern-rock hit “Dirty Blvd.”

Reed was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice, in 1992 as member of The Velvet Underground and posthumously as a solo artist in 2015.

Reed’s final album project saw him collaborate with Metallica on the 2011 concept album Lulu.

Lou died of liver cancer in October 2013 at age 71.

Luke Bryan and Orlando Bloom have struck up a bromance, thanks to ‘American Idol’

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Apparently, there’s a bromance heating up on the set of American Idol!

During Sunday night’s premiere of the hit show’s 20th season, it was revealed that Luke Bryan has struck up a friendship with actor Orlando Bloom, fiancé to fellow judge Katy Perry.

In the humorous clip from the show, the country singer can be seen exchanging pleasantries with The Lord of the Rings star, with the two talking on the phone and video chatting from the Idol set, discussing everything from Orlando’s dirt bike adventure to Katy revealing that her fiancé often asks about Luke.

“Me and Orlando are slowly falling in love,” Luke says with a smile from behind the judges’ table. “Get yourself someone that looks at you like Orlando looks at Luke,” Katy quips.

The unlikely pair have dubbed their bromance #LoveInBloom.

Fans can keep up to date on #LoveInBloom when Idol returns next Sunday night, airing at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Machine Gun Kelly releases ’Lockdown Sessions’ EP on streaming services

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Machine Gun Kelly has released a new EP featuring select songs from his Lockdown Sessions YouTube series, which first launched in March 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The three-track set includes the songs “Roll the Windows Up,” “Pretty Toxic Revolver” and “In These Walls (My House),” featuring PVRIS.

“It’s been two years since Lockdown Sessions hit YouTube,” Kelly says. “Finally time to upload on streaming platforms.”

“Roll the Windows Up” and “In These Walls” are also available on the Target exclusive edition of MGK’s 2020 album Tickets to My Downfall.

Along with original songs, Kelly’s Lockdown Sessions included a number of covers, including Paramore‘s “Misery Business” with Travis Barker and Oasis‘ “Champagne Supernova” with Yungblud.

Meanwhile, Kelly is prepping his new album Mainstream Sellout, due out March 25. The Tickets follow-up includes the WILLOW collaboration “Emo Girl.”

Kanye West, Future, and Kendrick Lamar to headline Rolling Loud Miami 2022

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Kanye West, Future and Kendrick Lamar are set to headline Rolling Loud Miami 2022, the festival announced Tuesday night.

Sharing a poster of the three-night event, Rolling Loud revealed the entire list of performers, which also includes Lil Baby, Gunna, Lil Durk, Saweetie, City Girls, Gucci Mane, Three 6 Mafia, DaBaby, Kodak Black and more.

Ye will kick off the music festival, headlining on Friday, July 22. Future will headline on Saturday and Kendrick will close out the festival on Sunday.

Tickets for Rolling Loud go on sale Monday, March 7 at 12 p.m. ET at RollingLoud.com.

Lady Gaga to co-host Elton John’s Oscar viewing party with Billy Porter & Eric McCormack

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Elton himself can’t be there, but this year’s Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing party will still be pretty star-studded.

Lady Gaga will co-host the evening, along with Billy Porter, Will & Grace star Eric McCormack and Elton’s husband and manager, David Furnish. As previously announced, Brandi Carlile will perform at the event, which takes place March 27 in West Hollywood Park.

It’s no surprise that Elton has tapped Gaga to co-host the event: Not only are they friends and musical collaborators, but Gaga is also the godmother to Elton’s two sons. Also, Gaga sadly didn’t receive an Oscar nomination for her role in House of Gucci, so she’s sort of free that night.

“Lady Gaga, Billy Porter and Eric McCormack are not only amazingly talented, but have greatly contributed to LGBTQ+ visibility and inclusion in entertainment – both on screen and in music,” Furnish, who’s also chairman of Elton’s AIDS Foundation, says in a statement. “I’m honored to have this group to join me on stage in West Hollywood Park to advocate for all marginalized groups affected by HIV.”

Porter and Furnish will take part in an Instagram Live conversation on March 3 at 8:45am ET on the EJAF feed. This will be the 30th anniversary of the Viewing Party, which has raised more than $86 million since its inception in 1992.

Meanwhile, Elton will miss the party for the first time because he has a concert that night which he can’t reschedule. On Instagram, he wrote that the event “is in the best hands with my dear friends @ladygaga, @eric_mccormack & @theebillyporter…And I can assure you…our return to West Hollywood for the first time in two years will be one truly spectacular evening!”

Dua Lipa sued for allegedly stealing “Levitating” from reggae band

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

A new lawsuit is accusing Dua Lipa of stealing her hit song “Levitating.”

According to documents obtained by TMZ, the Florida reggae band Artikal Sound System is suing the British pop star for copyright infringement. They claim the uber successful song was ripped off from their lesser-known 2017 track “Live Your Life.”

Others, including Dua’s label Warner Records, are also included in the suit, in which Artikal claims that those working with Dua heard “Live Your Life” and then proceeded to make a dupe.

As noted by TMZ, “the two songs do sound awfully similar, especially the chorus,” and although they have “different lyrics, obviously, the beat comes across as damn near the same.”

“Levitating” was released in October 2020 and is from her second studio album Future Nostalgia, which was released that same year. The track peaked at number two and spent 68 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, making it the longest-running top 10 song by a female artist on the chart.

Artikal is asking for profits made from “Levitating” as well as damages.

Report: Dua Lipa sued for allegedly stealing “Levitating” from reggae band

March 2, 2022 by WDNY Radio

A new lawsuit is accusing Dua Lipa of stealing her hit song “Levitating.”

According to documents obtained by TMZ, the Florida reggae band Artikal Sound System is suing the British pop star for copyright infringement. They claim the uber-successful song was ripped off from their lesser-known 2017 track, “Live Your Life.”

Others, including Dua’s label Warner Records, are also included in the suit, in which Artikal claims that those working with Dua heard “Live Your Life” and then proceeded to make a duplicate.

As noted by TMZ, “the two songs do sound awfully similar, especially the chorus,” and although they have “different lyrics, obviously, the beat comes across as damn near the same.”

Artikal is reportedly asking for profits made from “Levitating,” as well as damages.

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