Courtesy Trafalgar Releasing & Sony Music Entertainment
George Michael‘s final artistic statement, a documentary called George Michael Freedom Uncut, will debut in theaters worldwide on June 22.
The autobiographical documentary is narrated by the late star, who died in 2016. It focuses on the period after the release of his Faith album made him a global superstar, through the time following the release of his 1990 follow up Listen Without Prejudice: Vol 1.
The film shows how, during that time, George fought for his artistic freedom, met his first love, Anselmo Feleppa, and lived through Feleppa’s death from an AIDS-related illness, as well as the loss of his mother.
The movie features “exclusive, personal archive footage,” as well as never-before-seen footage from George’s iconic video for “Freedom! ’90.” The supermodels who starred in that video, including Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista, appear in the documentary, as do Elton John, Stevie Wonder, James Corden, Ricky Gervais, Mary J. Blige, Tony Bennett and fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier.
Freedom Uncut also features “timeless duets with George’s favorite artists,” and “explores how he influenced the cultural landscape,” according to a press release.
Avril Lavigne threw one heck of an engagement party. The “Love It When You Hate Me” singer is set to wed boyfriend Mod Sun, who proposed earlier this month in Paris.
Paris was the theme of the lovebirds’ engagement party, according to Avril’s Instagram Story. The two wore matching hot pink outfits — complete with berets — to their fancy outing, which boasted a table-running centerpiece of hot pink roses, green skull replicas and multicolored mini Eiffel Towers.
It appears berets were mandatory: a video of the impressive spread showed everyone at the table wearing the Parisian accessory.
As for food, the duo opted for a non-alcoholic drink to symbolize their love, offering guests lattes with their proposal picture etched in the foam. Machine Gun Kelly was among the guests and shared a snap of the fancy latte to his story, captioning it “Congrats f***ers.”
Guests dined on classic steak frites, sweet corn agnolotti, butter lettuce and endive salad, and roasted Dover sole meunière for the main course.
Those attending were also able to snack on “an array of Parisian delights,” according to Mod’s photo of the menu. He shared a snap of the offerings to his story, showing off a mountain of macarons, fruit tarts, eclairs and other mouth-watering delicacies spread across a table covered in rose petals.
He also grabbed a shot of their multi-layered engagement cake, which was decorated in white icing and drizzled with lime green piping. It also proclaimed, “He asked. She said … YES!”
Mod dubbed it, “The most beautiful engagement party ever” and showed off a line of candles lighting the walkways.
He and Avril announced their engagement on April 7. It’s unknown when they plan to tie the knot.
The New Mexico Environment Department’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau (OHSB) has fined the producers of Alec Baldwin‘s Western Rust $136,793 as a result of their investigation into the on-set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on October 21, 2022.
The agency issued a “Willful-Serious citation,” declaring that “Rust Movie Productions, LLC management knew that firearm safety procedures were not being followed on set and demonstrated plain indifference to employee safety by failing to review work practices and take corrective action.”
Hutchins was killed and the director of the film, Joel Souza, was injured when a live round in a pistol aimed by Baldwin discharged during a rehearsal in a New Mexico church. The actor insists he was assured the firearm was “cold,” meaning safe to handle.
Investigators later found on the set a mix of live rounds, inert “dummy” rounds — which should have been loaded into the pistol — and blanks.
“Rust Movie Productions, LLC was cited for the plain indifference to the recognized hazards associated with the use of firearms on set that resulted in a fatality, severe injury, and unsafe working conditions,” the agency said in a press release. It also noted that the investigation into the shootings “encompassed 1,560 hours of staff time, 14 interviews, and review of 566 documents.”
New Mexico Environment Cabinet Secretary James Kenney said in a statement, “Our investigation found that this tragic incident never would have happened if Rust Movie Productions, LLC had followed national film industry standards for firearm safety,” and said producers demonstrated a “complete failure…to follow recognized national protocols that keep employees safe.”
In response to the OHSB report, Stefan Friedman, the attorney for Rust Movie Productions, noted, “While we appreciate OHSB’s time and effort in its investigation, we disagree with its findings and plan to appeal. Our thoughts and prayers remain with Halyna’s family.”
Jason Bowles, the attorney for Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, declared in a statement that the OHSB report found that his client “was not provided adequate time or resources to conduct her job effectively, despite her voiced concerns.” The Bowles statement further asserted that the OHSB report concluded that producers “failed to call Hannah in to perform her armorer duties and inspect the firearm right before its use in the impromptu scene with Baldwin. As we have stated before, had anyone from Production called Hannah back into the church before the scene to consult with her, this tragedy would have been prevented.
Rust Movie Productions has 15 business days to pay the OHSB penalty and provide the agency with certification of corrective action, or they can contest the citation.
Hutchins’ family filed a wrongful death suit in February against a number of parties, including Baldwin and the film’s production, alleging in part that reckless behavior and cost-cutting led to Hutchins’ death.
Sebastian Bach and Dream Theater members James LaBrie and John Petrucci are among many artists taking part in an upcoming tribute album to Rush.
The two-disc compilation, aptly titled An All-Star Tribute to Rush, will be released June 24. It consists of 27 covers of Rush classics, including “Tom Sawyer,” “Limelight,” “Fly By Night,” “The Spirit of Radio” and “YYZ.”
Other artists participating include Deep Purple‘s Steve Morse, Testament‘s Alex Skolnick, Kip Winger, Great White‘s Jack Russell, former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Jake E. Lee, and Dokken‘s George Lynch. Additionally, the album also features contributions from late Warrant vocalist Jani Lane.
If that’s not enough Rush tributes for you, Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante is releasing his own Rush covers EP, which will be available this Saturday as part of Record Store Day.
Soul singer Giveon has new music on the way. He announced on Wednesday that his upcoming single, “Lie Again,” is set to be released on Friday, April 29.
Giveon shared the single’s cover art in an Instagram post — a blurred image of the singer who looks to be standing on a balcony, wearing a matching button down and pant ensemble — as well as the pre-save info.
The California native recently performed his 2020 RIAA-certified triple-Platinum hit “Heartbreak Anniversary” during weekend one of Coachella. He’s set to take the stage again this weekend for the second and final weekend of the annual music fest.
The last two years for Giveon have been full of musical success and chart-topping singles like his 2021 ballad, “For Tonight,” which he recently performed live, and also was the latest artist to be profiled by VEVO’s Lift.
Wet Leg has announced a batch of North American headlining dates.
The newly added shows begin August 2 in Toronto, and run into September. Tickets go on sale this Friday, April 22, at 10 a.m. local time.
For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit WetLegBand.com.
In addition to the headlining dates, Wet Leg will be playing a number of festivals this year, including Lollapalooza, Outside Lands and Life Is Beautiful. In October, they’ll play a run of dates opening for Florence + the Machine, followed by a trip to Australia in support of Harry Styles in February 2023.
Wet Leg released their self-titled debut album earlier this month. It includes the breakout single “Chaise Longue.”
Black Stone Cherry has announced a new live album called Live from the Royal Albert Hall…Y’All.
The record, which captures the Kentucky rockers’ 2021 set at the historic London venue, will be released June 24. You can watch the performance of the song “Ringin’ in My Head” streaming now on YouTube.
The Blu-ray release of Live from the Royal Albert Hall will also feature interviews with the band members, and archival footage of their first U.K. tour.
Black Stone Cherry’s most recent studio album is 2020’s The Human Condition.
Here’s the track list for Live from the Royal Albert Hall…Y’All:
“Me and Mary Jane”
“Burnin'”
“Again”
“Yeah Man”
“In My Blood/Island Jam”
“Ringin’ in My Head”
“Like I Roll”
“Cheaper to Drink Alone”
“Hell and High Water”
“Soulcreek”
“Devil’s Queen”
“Drum Solo”
“Things My Father Said”
“In Love with the Pain”
“Blind Man”
“Blame It on the Boom Boom”
“White Trash Millionaire”
“Lonely Train”
“Peace Is Free”
Cypress Hill‘s journey from their humble beginnings “from this little spot in East LA” to their worldwide influence on hip hop music proved to be an unpredictable one that the members are glad they embarked upon. Their pioneering combination of West Coast rap, Latin music and rock earned them many “first” accolades, and for the last three decades, the group’s impact on hip hop culture has continued to grow.
The new Showtime documentary Cypress Hill: Insane in the Brain provides an in-depth look into the lives of group members DJ Muggs, Eric Bobo, B-Real and Sen Dog, dating back to the rise of the iconic group in the early ’90s.
Founding member Sen Dog, born Senen Reyes, told ABC Audio that the group didn’t foresee the massive success they’d come to achieve.
“At the beginning, we thought we’d have maybe two, three albums. And we thought that girls wouldn’t like it because we were too hardcore underground,” he said. “And we were wrong about all that stuff.”
They were wrong indeed. After the group’s critically acclaimed debut album in 1991, they went on to release nine others, including the Billboard chart-topper Black Sunday, which includes the 1993 Gold RIAA-certified song “Insane in the Brain.”
Regarding the psychedelic track, Sen Dog admitted, “We thought that we had a good song, not a great song.”
Director Estevan Oriol made sure to highlight the group’s advocacy for marijuana, affectionately referred to as “the flower.” Oriol, a longtime friend of the band, told ABC Audio that he felt “a lot” of pressure to tell the group’s story authentically and truthfully.
Oriol said it was “next to impossible” to put 30 years of history into 90 minutes, but he and the crew did just that. (AUDIO IS ABC 1-ON-1)
Cypress Hill: Insane in the Brain airs tonight on Showtime, at 8 p.m. ET.
Olivia Rodrigo isn’t shy about her love and appreciation for Gwen Stefani and, on Wednesday, the two engaged in a brief, complimentary back and forth.
Olivia took to her Instagram story and shared a throwback commemorative photo of Gwen’s band No Doubt, which took over The Rave / Eagles Club on August 8, 1995 and August 13, 1996. Olivia was at the Milwaukee venue on her own SOUR world tour, so she must have walked through the halls to check the posters of all the famous acts who performed before her.
“Nobody does it like gwen,” Olivia captioned the snap and used two puppy-eyed emojis.
Of course, the “Slow Clap” singer caught wind of the shout-out and shared Olivia’s post to her own Instagram story, writing, “Thank UUU” along with a kiss and black heart emoji. Gwen added, “Good luck tonight !!” and soundtracked her shout-out to Olivia’s Grammy-nominated song, “good 4 u.”
This isn’t the first time the ladies praised one another. Last December, the 19-year-old singer told TIME that Gwen is the artist she wants to write a song with most. Of course, Gwen sweetly responded with, “I’d be honored.”
Gwen continued of Olivia’s “drivers license” debut single, “Olivia’s storytelling is confessional and intimate, it’s also larger than life… Rare is the artist who can transport that way, especially at such a young age. And for anyone going through their first heartbreak, Olivia’s voice is a light in the dark.”
Heart‘s Ann Wilsonhas debuted another advance track from her forthcoming solo album, Fierce Bliss, a duet version of the classic 1975 Queen ballad “Love of My Life” featuring country star and current Eagles touring member Vince Gill.
“‘Love of My Life’ is a beautiful song about endless love,” Ann says in a statement. “It was my honor to duet with Vince Gill on this song; an unforgettable experience for which I’m grateful!”
She further explains, “I had the idea for the Queen song ‘Love of My Life’ as a duet, so I just tried to picture who would be ‘the male angel’ that would sing the other part of it. I thought how great the song would be if it was stripped down and just sung with soul, and it had to be Vince Gill because he’s got that voice, that soul.”
Wilson and Gill recorded the track with the members of Ann’s current backing group, The Amazing Dawgs.
The “Love of My Life” duet is available now via digital formats, while a companion music video for the tune has debited on Wilson’s official YouTube channel. The clip shows a thorny rose and a woman’s hand with long, sharp fingernails pulling petals off of the flower. As she comes to the last few petals, she removes the hand that was holding the rose, and we see that it’s bleeding. We then see a man’s hands enter the frame, and he helps wipe the blood off of the woman’s hand.
“Love of My Life” is the fourth advance tune that Ann has released from Fierce Bliss, following the original songs “Greed” and “A Moment in Heaven,” and a cover of Eurythmics‘ “Missionary Man.”
As previously reported, Fierce Bliss will be released on April 29, and can be pre-ordered now.
