Cardi B issued a strongly-worded reminder Thursday that April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and why everyone should care about the issue.
“Before April is over, don’t forget it’s sexual assault awareness month, no means no!” the “Up” rapper explained on Twitter. “It doesn’t matter what you wear, it doesn’t matter who you are, male or female. For anyone going through this, the shame is not yours to carry… it’s the monsters who do this.”
“Also parents we can’t forget our children. There are sick people everywhere, daycare, schools, you name it,” Cardi continued in a follow-up tweet, “Make sure you teach them from a early age, no one is to touch your private parts & never be afraid to tell mommy & daddy when someone makes you uncomfortable.”
The Grammy winner then continued the conversation on Instagram, sharing screenshots of her prior messages before continuing in the caption, “Bringing the awareness can be a key to help stopping it. Women, children, and even men should never have to feel like they should be silenced or ashamed for telling their story and holding sick a** people accountable.”
“We have to be more careful in protecting ourselves and our children by teaching them that there are no secrets when it comes to mommy and daddy,” she added. “When one person speaks up it helps others see they are not alone.”
(NEW YORK) — As the midterm elections inch closer and political conversations heat up, one organization is hoping to bring people together despite their differences.
America Talks, in partnership with Gannett and USA Today, launched in 2021 aiming to connect Americans of varying political ideologies. Participants in the online event answer a short survey and the questions ask how they feel about political topics so that they can be paired with someone who has different perspectives than their own. Then, they are matched with someone from across the country and given a guide to help foster the conversation. The idea is based on contact theory, a sociological concept that person-to-person contact can help reduce friction.
The second annual America Talks takes place on Saturday.
Brian Roy, an Independent from Benton, Kentucky, and Brian Webb, a Libertarian from Sheridan, Wyoming, found common ground and friendship during their America Talks conversation last year.
“We began to talk about the differences in Wyoming and in Kentucky. We talked about real everyday things that were not divisive and mean-spirited. And so we’ve continued that dialogue, and he sends me pictures and we talk and we talk about the weather, how cold it is in Wyoming versus how wet it is,” Roy told ABC News, adding that “he checked on us during the aftermath of the tornado back in December.”
“We just had a real genuine conversation, and you know what, we don’t enter into politics. So it’s been good and it’s refreshing, and I wish it would happen here more at home where I live, but it’s still very difficult to communicate with some people,” Roy said.
Mizell Stewart III, vice president of news performance, talent, and partnerships for Gannett told ABC News the program is about “elements of what Americans agree on rather than what divides Americans.”
“In other words, let’s engage people in conversation that is really person to person, not through a social media filter,” Stewart said.
Half of Americans who voted for Joe Biden and almost 60% who voted for Donald Trump view the opposing party as “presenting a clear and present danger to American democracy,” according to the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
And the divisions date back to before the Trump era. Since at least 2012, Americans are more likely to say conflicts between Democrats and Republicans are stronger than between other groups, according to a Pew Research Center study out of 17 countries. Americans also say the country is more divided now than it was before the pandemic.
“I am someone that enjoys politics,” said Roy. “I enjoyed talking about politics up until about two or three years ago, and then it got so contentious, and it got so unfriendly, even among family and very close friends that it got to where it was just no longer a discussion that I wanted to join in.”
While divisions run high, the Pew Research Center also found both Republicans and Democrats when questioned had certain things in common, like wanting their preferred candidates to address the needs of all Americans “even if it means disappointing some of his supporters.”
According to Mizell, those kinds of commonalities are what America Talks is all about.
“…As we begin to peel away layers of expectations, if you will, in conversations like this and really engage in dialogue, what we find is that we have much more in common than we realize,” he said.
That is the lesson Roy has taken away.
“We’re all Americans. We all care about our local communities. We care about our state, we care about our country,” he said. “And when we get down into the weeds of partisan politics, everybody… is attracted to a sound bite, most of them negative, and that’s the sad part.”
“There’s no two-way conversation and I just wish people would relax, calm down,” he added. “When they look at the flag…I wish people would look at that and try to remember that we’re all in this together. And we can agree to disagree.”
WILLOW is featured on a new song from English pop artist PinkPantheress called “Where You Are.”
The track credits Paramore as a co-writer, as it samples the “Hard Times” outfit’s 2005 song “Never Let This Go.”
“I had a lot of fun writing this song,” PinkPantheress says. “It took loads of attempts to get it right but this is probably my proudest work to date, and I’m super happy for everyone to hear it.”
You can listen to “Where You Are” now via digital outlets, and watch its accompanying video streaming now on YouTube.
WILLOW’s new album lately I feel EVERYTHING was released last July. It includes the Travis Barker-featuring single “Transparent Soul,” and a collaboration with Avril Lavigne.
WILLOW also recently linked up with Machine Gun Kelly for the single “Emo Girl.”
Friday, April 22 is Earth Day, so here’s a reminder that you can score some unique and rare tracks today — and fight the global climate crisis at the same time.
As previously reported, Michael Stipe has teamed with legendary producer Brian Eno for a new single called “Future if Future,” which is one of about 100 songs that are available today with sales benefiting groups focused on raising awareness and fighting climate change.
In addition to the Stipe track, you’ll also find a never-before-released version of Peter Gabriel‘s classic 1982 track “Shock the Monkey,” as well as a version of Coldplay’s “Humankind” recorded live in Mexico City. There are also songs by ex-Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, Nile Rodgers and Eno himself.
Sales of the tracks benefit an organization that Eno founded, EarthPercent. Proceeds will go to organizations developing promising solutions to the climate crisis. All of the songs are now available for streaming and download at Earthpercent/bandcamp.com.
Part of EarthPercent’s mission is dedicated to addressing the environmental impact of the music industry, such as lowering the carbon footprint of touring artists. EarthPercent is asking the music community and related businesses to pledge a small percentage of what they make to the cause, with a goal of raise about $100 million by 2030.
Richard Cartwright/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
(NOTE LANGUAGE) Ellen Pompeo is opening up about the time commitment Grey’s Anatomy has required over the years, and her former co-star Katherine Heigl‘s previous remarks about it.
While speaking with her Grey’s co-star Kate Walsh on a recent episode of the Tell Me with Ellen Pompeo podcast, the actresses discussed the long hours the cast and crew have devoted to the show, and how that’s changed over the years.
“I’m very lucky now with my schedule on Grey’s, I get to cut back and overall I’m happy for the production as a whole because we have cut back tremendously,” Pompeo said. “I mean, back in the day we used to do crazy, crazy hours and that alone will make you insane.”
Pompeo then referenced comments their former co-star Katherine Heigl, who portrayed Dr. Izzie Stevens on the show, made about her time working on the medical drama.
“I remember Heigl said something on a talk show about the insane hours we were working but she was 100 percent right,” Pompeo said. “And had she said that today, she’d be a complete hero. But she’s ahead of her time — made a statement about our crazy hours and of course, let’s slam a woman and call her ungrateful.’”
“When the truth is, she’s 100 percent honest and it’s absolutely correct what she said and she was f****** ba**sy for saying it,” the actress continued. “She was telling the truth. She wasn’t lying.”
Heigl, who famously left the series during its sixth season in 2010, decried the medical drama’s work hours during a 2009 appearance on The Late Show With David Letterman.
She called “a seventeen-hour day…cruel and mean,” adding, “I’m going to keep saying this because I hope it embarrasses them…”
Those of us hoping for an iconic Met Gala moment from Zendaya this year are out of luck.
The actress revealed to Extra that she won’t be attending the May 2 soiree, marking the second year she’s missed the mega fashion event.
“I hate to disappoint my fans here, but I will be working,” the Euphoria star tells Extra. “Your girl’s got to work and make some movies, so I wish everyone the best. I will be playing tennis, but I will be back eventually… I’ll keep delivering in other ways.”
The “playing tennis” comment is in reference to her upcoming movie Challengers, in which she plays a tennis player turned coach who helps her husband become a champ.
(NEW YORK) — The New York City mother of two whose body was found inside a duffel bag had asked her alleged killer to leave her house “multiple times” before she was stabbed to death, according to prosecutors.
The suspect, handyman David Bonola, was arrested early Thursday, days after he allegedly stabbed Orsolya Gaal over 50 times, slashed her throat and dumped her body in her son’s hockey bag, the NYPD said.
Bonola, 44, and Gaal 51, had been having an off-and-on affair for two years, according to police.
Bonola allegedly killed Gaal in her Queens home early Saturday while her 13-year-old son was upstairs, officials said.
“Because she knew him, she let him into the house. He then engaged her in a verbal dispute and unfortunately she had to ask him to leave multiple times,” assistant district attorney Josh Garland said.
Prosecutors said Bonola allegedly dragged Gaal’s body through “a quiet residential neighborhood,” leaving a trail of blood leading back to her home.
“Two boys are left without a mother and a young teenager faces the added trauma of being home when this heinous murder took place,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said.
Police said Bonola offered to speak to authorities on Wednesday and made incriminating statements during questioning. Bonola was arrested just before 1 a.m. Thursday.
Bonola appeared in court Thursday and was ordered held without bail on second-degree murder charges. He was placed on suicide watch at the request of his defense attorney and is due back in court next week.
(GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.) — Nearly three weeks after the killing of 26-year-old Patrick Lyoya, his family, friends and activists are coming together to celebrate his life and call for justice in his death.
His funeral will take place Friday at 11 a.m. local time at the Renaissance Church of God in Christ in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Civil rights activist Al Sharpton, civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the Lyoya family, Commissioner Robert Womack and bishop Dennis McMurray are expected to speak at the service, which is open to all masked attendees.
Lyoya, a native of Congo, was shot by an officer following a struggle outside a house in Grand Rapids on April 4 after he was pulled over for a faulty license plate, according to police.
Video of Lyoya’s death was recorded on an officer’s body camera, dashcam video, security cameras and a bystander’s cellphone and released by the police amidst community pressure last week.
The footage shows a white police officer, whose name has not yet been released, struggling with Lyoya after chasing him on foot following a traffic stop. The officer eventually forces Lyoya to the ground and is heard shouting “stop resisting,” “let go” and “drop the Taser,” before shooting him in the head.
The Grand Rapids Police Department has not yet named the officer involved in Lyoya’s death and says the investigation is “ongoing.” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has said the investigation will be “thorough.”
Protesters have peacefully demonstrated in Grand Rapids since the release of the video footage, calling for justice for Lyoya.
Glass Animals has premiered a new remix of the band’s song “I Don’t Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance)” in collaboration with The Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.
The updated recording features a new guitar solo at the end of the song, courtesy of Hammond. You can listen to the remix now via digital outlets.
The original “I Don’t Wanna Talk” premiered last September as Glass Animals’ single, “Heat Waves,” was making its historic run to the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100. “Heat Waves” ended up spending five weeks at number one on the chart.
In other collaborative Glass Animals happenings, frontman Dave Bayley is co-producing Florence + the Machine‘s upcoming album, Dance Fever, due out May 13.
Michael Bublé is an old soul. Growing up, he “loved” listening to jazz legends such as Dean Martin, Tony Bennett and others — and he hopes to share his appreciation of the classics with the younger crowd.
“The music I was listening to was from a different generation,” the Grammy winner told Esquire, “I just loved the music. It turned me on. And what’s even weirder was, I couldn’t understand why other kids my age didn’t feel the same way.”
Michael added, “It’s just so swingin’ and the musicians are just so bada**. That’s what I mean when I say, how can anyone not hear that and go, ‘Wow!'”
The “I’ll Never Not Love You” singer hopes his songs inspire the younger generation to preserve the spirit of jazz music. Michael is comforted that he’s not alone in the battle, citing artists such as Jon Batiste, Harry Connick Jr. and others who are “keeping the legacy alive” by acting as “custodians of this genre.”
“We admire each other and it’s not competition,” he attested. “It’s truly genuine appreciation for how each of us have sort of taken the root of jazz, and with the seeds sown by our heroes and now as the tree grows and there are different branches, and each of us have a small part in keeping it alive.”
“It’s too good to die,” Michael remarked, “When it comes to the music I take it dead serious. I feel like we all have this wonderful gift of the responsibility of honoring our heroes.”
The Canadian crooner added his children are gravitating toward older music all on their own without his influence, revealing his eight-year-old son, Noah, loves “50s-era rock and roll, like Elvis Presley.”
“I always think, could this be genetic?” Michael laughed.
