BTS’ V to star in new TV show In ‘The Soop: Friendship Trip’

BTS’ V to star in new TV show In ‘The Soop: Friendship Trip’
BTS’ V to star in new TV show In ‘The Soop: Friendship Trip’
ABC

BTS‘ V is heading back to TV — to star in a spinoff of the popular South Korean reality series In The Soop. But, instead of starring alongside his famous bandmates, this series follows just him and four other celebrities.

NME reports that the four-part series, In The Soop: Friendship Trip, airs in July and sees V heading out on vacation with some of his best friends — actors Park Seo-joon, Choi Woo-shik and Park Hyung-sik as well as rapper Peakboy.  The group, which fans have dubbed the “Wooga Fam,” will embark on a four-day adventure.

In The Soop was created by BTS’ label Big Hit Entertainment, which follows the septet on vacation when they need to take a break from their busy schedules. Season one aired in 2020 and saw the “Butter” singers hanging out in a remote forest, while the second season, which aired in 2021, took them to a villa in the mountains.

For those who are curious about the show’s name, “soop” is the Korean word for “forest.” 

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Andy Grammer admits he “broke down pretty hard” during the pandemic

Andy Grammer admits he “broke down pretty hard” during the pandemic
Andy Grammer admits he “broke down pretty hard” during the pandemic
Lester Cohen/Getty Images for BMG

Andy Grammer is known for his positive outlook on life, but the “Honey, I’m Good” singer admits the pandemic deeply affected his mental health.

Speaking to the Cincinnati Enquirer, Andy explained how difficult it was for him to stay positive over the past few years.  “I went down real hard and got into therapy, and that’s what brought me around,” he confessed.  “I wasn’t super positive. I broke down pretty hard.”

Andy’s mental health has improved since and now he’s using that past experience to “inform some of my art” and better connect with fans.  “I still come at it from a place where I think we’re here on Earth to grow,” he said of his songwriting process. “When terrible things happen, at the end of the day, no matter what, that’s a heavier weight in the gym that you’re supposed to lift. There’s always something that comes out of it.”

Speaking of how he creates his music, Andy says he starts with the lyrics first and builds his song around them.  “When lyrics are the main focus, I think it should work on a guitar. When the melody and the lyrics are good enough, then I’m really open to a lot of different ways to present it,” he detailed. “Until the lyrics and the melody are good, I don’t care about anything else.”

Andy has been open that he doesn’t care about making the next radio hit because his main objective is to make people feel something through his music.  He said that mentality developed when he was busking on the streets of Los Angeles, before he was discovered.

“It set the bar at the very beginning of my career really high. I bring that level of intensity into most things,” said Andy. 

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The Rolling Stones postpone a second show following Mick Jagger’s COVID-19 diagnosis

The Rolling Stones postpone a second show following Mick Jagger’s COVID-19 diagnosis
The Rolling Stones postpone a second show following Mick Jagger’s COVID-19 diagnosis
Dave J Hogan/Dave J Hogan/Getty Images

The Rolling Stones have now postponed a second show following frontman Mick Jagger‘s positive COVID-19 test.

After calling off their show in Amsterdam on Monday, the band has announced on their socials that this Friday’s show in Bern, Switzerland, is also postponed.

The statement adds, “The Rolling Stones are deeply sorry for tonight’s postponement, but the safety of the audience, fellow musicians and the touring crew has to take priority.”

As of now, The Stones will perform at their next scheduled date in Milan, Italy, on June 21. Details on the rescheduling of the Friday show will be announced soon, the band says, and tickets that have already been purchased for the Bern concert will be honored for the new date.

So far, Jagger hasn’t made any public comment about this latest postponement, nor has guitarist Keith Richards. Both of them took to social media to comment on the Amsterdam postponement.

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NBA Finals: Warriors take the lead in Game 5 over Celtics

NBA Finals: Warriors take the lead in Game 5 over Celtics
NBA Finals: Warriors take the lead in Game 5 over Celtics
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

(SAN FRANCISCO) — The Golden State Warriors are just one win away from another championship title after beating the Boston Celtics in Game 5 of the NBA Finals Monday night.

The Warriors topped the Celtics 104-94 in San Francisco to take a 3-2 lead in the series.

Both teams will now head to Boston for Game 6 on Thursday. Tip off is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET.

Should the Warriors win, it will mark the team’s seventh championship title and its first since 2018.

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Wednesday’s Jan. 6 committee hearing postponed

Wednesday’s Jan. 6 committee hearing postponed
Wednesday’s Jan. 6 committee hearing postponed
J.Castro/Getty Images

(WASHINGTON) — The Jan. 6 committee announced Tuesday morning that its hearing set for Wednesday has been postponed.

No reason was given.

The hearing’s focus was to be then-President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign on the Justice Department to back his false claims of election fraud.

Story developing…

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Lizzo changes lyrics to new song “Grrrls” after backlash over “ableist slur”

Lizzo changes lyrics to new song “Grrrls” after backlash over “ableist slur”
Lizzo changes lyrics to new song “Grrrls” after backlash over “ableist slur”
Will Heath/NBC

Fans spoke and Lizzo listened.

After receiving backlash over a lyric in her newly released song “Grrrls” being considered an “ableist slur,” Lizzo promptly updated the song and issued a statement.  

“It’s been brought to my attention that there is a harmful word in my new song “GRRRLS,” Lizzo wrote in a note shared to social media on Monday. “Let me make one thing clear: I never want to promote derogatory language. As a fat Black woman in America, I’ve had many hurtful words used against me, so I understand the power words can have (whether intentionally, or in my case, unintentionally).”

“I’m proud to say there’s a new version of “Grrrls” with a lyric change,” she continued. “This is the result of me listening and taking action. As an influential artist, I’m dedicated to being part of the change I’ve been waiting to see in the world. Xoxo, Lizzo.”

Lizzo released “Grrrls” on Friday, June 9 and in the song’s opening she raps, “Hold my bag, b****, hold my bag / Do you see this s***? I’m a spaz.”

Following the track’s release, users took to Twitter to call out her use of the term “spaz,” calling it an “ableist slur.” “Hey @lizzo my disability Cerebral Palsy is literally classified as Spastic Diplegia (where spasticity refers to unending painful tightness in my legs) your new song makes me pretty angry + sad,” one user expressed. “‘Spaz’ doesn’t mean freaked out or crazy. It’s an ableist slur. It’s 2022. Do better.”

The “Grrrls” lyrics have since been updated to read, “Hold my bag, b****, hold my bag / Do you see this s***?Hold me back.”

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Halsey’s son isn’t a fan of their singing

Halsey’s son isn’t a fan of their singing
Halsey’s son isn’t a fan of their singing
Todd Owyoung/NBC

Halsey dropped by The Tonight Show on Monday, where the singer revealed that their son, Ender, who’ll turn a year old on July 14, is not a fan of their singing.

“He hates it…He’s my biggest critic,” the singer — who uses she/they pronouns — told host Jimmy Fallon.

“It’s funny, my mom can’t carry a tune in a bucket, it’s really bad,” they continued. “She sings, his eyes light up like she’s the stars and the moon, but when I sing, he’s not a fan. Not a fan”

Halsey also discussed their current tour, as well as their new single, “So Good,” written about their partner, filmmaker Alev Aydin, whom they met when he was hired to make a film about them in 2017.

“He kind of followed me around on tour and interviewed me,” Halsey recalled. “And after a couple of years of getting to know me, one day I kind of sat down and was like, ‘You know everything about me, I don’t know anything about you, I’m gonna start interviewing you back.’ And we found out that we had so much in common and after being friends for a long time, we fell in love.”

As for their Love and Power tour, Halsey declared, “Being back on the road and seeing people and the crowd coming alive…it’s incredible.”

The Love and Power Tour lands in Boise, Idaho on Wednesday.

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Justin Bieber shares health update after revealing Ramsay Hunt syndrome diagnosis

Justin Bieber shares health update after revealing Ramsay Hunt syndrome diagnosis
Justin Bieber shares health update after revealing Ramsay Hunt syndrome diagnosis

Justin Bieber is leaning on his faith as he deals with his Ramsay Hunt syndrome diagnosis. 

Taking to Instagram Stories Monday night, Justin gave fans an update on how he’s been feeling since revealing on Friday that he’s been diagnosed with the rare neurological disorder.  

“Wanted to share a little bit of how I’ve been feelin,” he began. “Each day has gotten better and through all of the discomfort I have found comfort in the one who designed me and knows me.”

“I’m reminded he knows all of me. He know the darkest parts of me that I want no one to know about and he constantly welcomes me into his loving arms,” the “Honest” singer continued. “This perspective has given me peace during this horrific storm that I’m facing. I know this storm will pass but in the meantime JESUS IS WITH ME.”

The update comes after Justin shared his Ramsay Hunt diagnosis, which caused partial facial paralysis and resulted in the singer postponing his tour. 

Ramsay Hunt syndrome is a rare neurological complication caused by the varicella zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox and shingles.

Dr. Leah Croll, MD, neurovascular fellow at NYU Langone Health, told ABC News, “Eventually, later on in life, the virus can reactivate and cause something like Ramsay Hunt syndrome. Certain situations that can be stressful…[and] other illnesses can trigger it. Sometimes, we don’t know why it happens.”

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John Cena surprises nonverbal fan who fled Ukraine with family

John Cena surprises nonverbal fan who fled Ukraine with family
John Cena surprises nonverbal fan who fled Ukraine with family
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Discovery

WWE star and on-screen superhero John Cena made a real-life heroic effort to surprise a super fan who escaped the war in Ukraine.

Misha Rohozhyn and his family recently fled Mariupol after their home was destroyed amid the ongoing war. Liana Rohozhyn took her son, who has Down syndrome and is nonverbal, using the excuse that they were fleeing their home to see his hero.

It wasn’t true, of course — until Cena made it happen.

“When I read about Misha’s story, it reached out to me. Not just Misha’s story but Misha’s mom as well,” Cena said in an interview with WWE.

Cena, already in Europe for work, made a quick trip to Amsterdam, where Misha and his family have relocated to just outside the city. The superstar spent the afternoon with the boy building blocks, eating cake and getting him decked out in Cena’s “You Can’t See Me” gear. He even gave Misha his own replica WWE championship belt.

Seeing his hero in person brought a joyous and tearful response from Misha.

“Misha’s ability to embrace persistence. That’s extraordinary. Those words ‘never give up,’ we’ve all thought about those in our life, they’re very powerful and I think Misha is a great example,” Cena said. “Misha’s mom, they’re two great examples of how persistence can lead to joy even during the toughest of times.”

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In Brief: ‘Knives Out’ sequel gets a title, and more

In Brief: ‘Knives Out’ sequel gets a title, and more
In Brief: ‘Knives Out’ sequel gets a title, and more

Rian Johnson has revealed the title of his sequel to the 2019 film Knives Out. “Benoit Blanc’s next case, the follow up to Knives Out, is called GLASS ONION,” Johnson tweeted on Monday, along with a short video announcing the followup should arrive in time for the holiday season. Joining Daniel Craig, who returns as Detective Blanc, are Kate Hudson, Ethan Hawke, Leslie Odom Jr., Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn and Dave Bautista. Glass Onion will be the first of two sequels, both of which Johnson will direct. Plot details are being kept under wraps. The first film earned $311.6 million in theaters worldwide…

(NOTE LANGUAGE) To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before star Lana Condor is taking care of some unfinished business in the trailer to her new Netflix series, Boo, B****. “Over the course of one night,” the eight-episode series follows “a high school senior, who’s lived her life safely under the radar, seizes the opportunity to change her narrative and start living an epic life, only to find out the next morning… she’s a motherf****** ghost,” according to the show’s official logline. Boo, B**** launches July 8 on Netflix… (Trailer contains uncensored profanity.)

Disney/Pixar’s Lightyear is ready to fly to infinity and beyond, but it will skip theaters in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar, as well as Malaysia or Indonesia, according to Deadline. The reason is reportedly due to a same-sex kiss between Alisha, a character voiced by Uzo Aduba, and another woman included in the Toy Story sequel. Lightyear joins other Disney movies that have faced restrictions in the Gulf region, allegedly for reasons ranging from depictions of or references to homosexuality to depictions of gods and prophets, include West Side Story, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Eternals

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