Lil Nas X‘s instantly controversial video for “Industry Baby” has gotten the VEVO Footnotes treatment: You can now watch the making-of feature, complete with behind-the-scenes information and commentary from both the rapper and the clip’s director.
Here are just some of the things you can learn about the clip from VEVO Footnotes:
–The video, in which Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow break out of “Montero State Prison,” is “essentially a giant metaphor to represent Nas’ unwillingness to conform to the industry standards or be caged in because of his beliefs,” explains director Christian Breslauer.
–Lil Nas X chose the prison setting because he wanted “to go to a place people would least expect me to go in a music video. An overly masculine place and make it gay asf.”
–The Grammys you see in Nas’ jail cell are the actual Grammys he won for “Old Town Road.”
–The security guard who gets punched by Nas is Colton Haynes, one of the stars of the Teen Wolf TV series.
–Lil Nas X’s favorite scene isn’t the nude shower dance sequence: It’s the part where everyone is dancing together in the prison yard.
“The song felt like a victory lap… but also an underdog anthem, and that’s what I wanted the lyrics to reflect,” the chart-topping rapper says of “Industry Baby.” “I wanted a song to remind people I’m not going anywhere.”
(WASHINGTON) — In the nine months since the Jan. 6 attack, even as their physical injuries heal, some Capitol Police officers still do battle with unseen wounds and memories.
As part of their department’s efforts to assist with that healing, the agency has now added two “wellness dogs” to its health program.
ABC News spoke with two officers in that program who have supported each other, with help from Lila, a 3-year old black lab from California.
Invisible injuries
U.S. Capitol Police officer Jeffrey Albanese, a 14-year veteran, said his role on Jan. 6 was to make sure all emergency personnel who needed to be in the Capitol could enter.
But what haunts him is having listened to radio calls from officers in distress.
“Hearing the cries for help, hearing, ‘We need officers here, we need officers at this place.’ Just hearing your responses back, ‘This is all we have.’ So, I’d say, you know, for me that was profound,” Albanese said.
One of those who needed assistance was fellow officer Caroline Edwards, who is dealing with prolonged effects from the attack, including a traumatic brain injury.
She was working on the Capitol’s West Front, when she saw a crowd of about 200 protesters coming at her. As they came closer, they began tearing down fences and barricades, Edwards said, using them to attack her and her fellow officers.
She has struggled in the months since.
“You kind of have this, this guilt of like, ‘Am I, am I making this up?’ — because I can’t tell you know I can’t show in a tangible way that I’m injured, but you know I really have to tell people I’m not feeling good today,” Edwards said.
The “hardest part about having a traumatic brain injury is just the unseen injury part,” she added. “You kind of have to tell people yourself like, I’m not feeling good today, I gotta, I gotta stop you have to set your own boundaries which is it difficult for anybody, let alone a police officer.”
Edwards said it’s been hard being away from her fellow officers during her recovery. “The injury takes you out of that tight-knit police community that you kind of come to know and love, and you see everybody working, you see everybody, suffering, and you have to sit home and not be able to do anything about it.”
Thanks to a peer support group, she said, she knew her feelings of guilt were understood.
Comfort dogs
As they spoke to reporters on Capitol Hill, both Albanese and Edwards were joined on by their four-legged colleague.
In the past few weeks, the department has hired two new comfort dogs, Lila and Leo, to address trauma as well as support the long-term health and well-being of their employees.
Dogs on Capitol Hill aren’t a new concept; they are often tucked away in congressional offices, led on leashes held by staffers and lawmakers. On Fridays, they can be seen roaming the halls when Congress often isn’t in session.
Wellness Coordinator Dimitri Louis, who began working at the Capitol in 2016, and joined the police force full-time focusing on wellness and resiliency, said since Jan. 6 there’s been an increased demand for the program’s resources.
Soon after the insurrection, several service animals were brought to Capitol Hill by other support agencies, including neighboring police departments. Officers quickly noted their positive impact.
Louis, who wasn’t a dog person before meeting Lila, now calls her a blessing.
“She originally started off as a seeing-eye dog, but through her training, they realize how much she loves squirrels and that distraction can be an issue. So, she got retrained to be very comfortable around people around crowds and to be very very social,” he said.
Lila moved in with Louis in June. Her canine colleague, Leo, joined the police force just two weeks ago with the goal to “lower anxiety, bring smiles and improve the overall well-being of all our employees, both sworn and civil,” Louis said.
Every day for Lila looks different. Some days, members of the police force can request her. Other times, she comes by to greet fellow members of the force. And some days, she just hangs out with Louis as he works in his office. However, he said, she does work at least 40 hours per a week.
And much like many other dogs “she does love chasing squirrels, which sometimes can be a challenge. She loves chasing squirrels, she really just loves being around people. It’s awesome that for her temperament and her personality, She loves what she does for work,” he said.
Korn drummer Ray Luzier has tested positive for COVID-19.
The “Freak on a Leash” metallers announced the news in an Instagram post Thursday, adding that Luzier will be absent from their upcoming shows taking place on October 15 in Las Vegas; October 16 in Fresno, California; and October 18 in Oakland, California.
For those dates, drum duties will be handled by Aric Improta of FEVER 333. Luzier is expected to be back on stage with Korn for their Los Angeles dates with System of a Down on October 22 and 23.
Luzier is now the third member of Korn to contract COVID-19. Frontman Jonathan Davis tested positive back in August, while guitarist James “Munky” Shaffer came down with the virus in September.
After celebrating her 29th birthday with a massive blowout on Monday attended by Megan Thee Stallion, Normani, Lizzo and more, Cardi B has won a court fight over the trial date for a copyright-infringement lawsuit filed by a photographer.
Kevin Michael Brophy is suing the “Rumors” rapper for at least five million dollars, accusing her of illegally using his tattoo of a tiger and a snake for the cover of her 2016 debut mixtape, Gangsta B**** Music, Vol. 1, according to RadarOnline.
The trial was originally scheduled to begin later this month, then was pushed to next year because Cardi claimed she needed extra time to travel from New York City to California where the trial would be held.
Her lawyer wrote, “For medical reasons, it is inadvisable for her to travel from her present residence on the East Coast to Southern California.”
Cardi’s attorney continued, “Being in the immediate post-natal period and nursing her newborn child, it would be an unreasonable imposition upon her to require her to actively be present for and participate in pretrial preparation and attendance at the trial itself.”
However, when the Grammy winner flew to Paris for Fashion Week in September, Brophy demanded that the trial be moved up to December, and that Cardi should be sanctioned and fined $8,130 for lying under oath.
On Wednesday, a judge ruled in Cardi’s favor. “In short, the court sees no reason to advance the trial date or issue an order to show cause regarding sanctions at this time,” ruled Judge Cormac Carney, according to AllHipHop.com.
Brophy and Cardi B’s court trial is scheduled for February 1, 2022.
There’s nothing colder than space: except maybe Star Trek star Geoge Takei.
William Shatner‘s record-breaking flight to space on Wednesday didn’t put any space between Takei and his longstanding grudge against his former co-star.
“He’s boldly going where other people have gone before,” Takei sniffed to Page Six, while in New York City at the Wednesday night opening of the play Thoughts of a Colored Man.
The 84-year-old Takei, who played Hikaru Sulu alongside Shatner’s Captain Kirk on the classic TV show and on the big screen, added, “He’s a guinea pig, 90 years old and it’s important to find out what happens. So 90 years old is going to show a great deal more on the wear and tear on the human body, so he’ll be a good specimen to study.”
Takei added, however, that Shatner was “not the fittest specimen of 90 years old, so he’ll be a specimen that’s unfit!”
To quote the actor’s famous catchphrase, “Oh my.”
In the past, the two U.S.S. Enterprise veterans have famously taken shots at each other, with Takei calling Shatner “self-centered,” and accusing him of trying to limit Sulu’s importance to the franchise. In turn, Shatner has said of Takei, “There must be something else inside George that is festering, and it makes him unhappy that he takes it out on me.”
Bill has said he feels “nothing but pity” for his Star Trek co-star.
Shatner blasted off Wednesday morning aboard Jeff Bezos‘ New Shepard spacecraft, which is operated by the Amazon head’s Blue Origin company. The actor was moved to tears upon his return.
Darius Rucker lends his voice to “Good Strong Woman,” a breezy new release off of Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Keb’ Mo’’s forthcoming Good to Be album.
Gently lilting and optimistic, the song celebrates how beautiful life can be with the right partner.
“She will never leave you if you treat her right /She’ll be there in the morning ‘til the late of night,” Darius sings in his verse of the song. “She’s the kind that’s never gonna let you down/ Makes you put the brakes on the world around.”
Keb’ Mo’ co-wrote “Good Strong Woman” with Nashville writers Jason Gantt and Jason Nix, and Darius is one of a handful of country collaborators on Good to Be. Others include roots-leaning act Old Crow Medicine Show and actor/singer-songwriter Kristin Chenoweth. Vince Gill produced a portion of the new record, which will be out in January 2022.
For his part, Darius recently celebrated his latest number-one hit with another carefree anthem, “Beers and Sunshine.”
How often do you hear of an artist asking fans not to stream his song, and stream his rival’s song instead? Well, that’s just the kind of guy Ed Sheeran is.
Ed’s hit “Shivers” has been number one on the British singles chart for several weeks now and Ed himself has been number one for some 15 weeks straight, thanks to his previous single “Bad Habits.” But right behind him this week are Elton John and Dua Lipa, with their mashup remix “Cold Heart.”
The prediction is that “Cold Heart” will overtake “Shivers” — and Ed is the one who wants to see that happen the most.
“@eltonjohn is so close to knocking me off the #1 spot in the U.K.,” Ed writes on Instagram. “It will be his first number one in almost twenty years and I really want it to happen. Please go buy/stream/download Cold Heart with@dualipa now.”
He continues, “15 weeks at #1 was more than I ever expected anyway, love you all. Who doesn’t wanna be knocked off by Elton anyway?”
Of course, Ed and Elton are close friends; in fact, Ed used to be managed by Elton’s company, Rocket Management. The two are also coming out with a joint Christmas single soon that will no doubt put them both on top of the British charts, so it’s not like Ed has that much to lose by promoting Elton’s song over his.
The Storyteller faced some stiff competition, having been released the same day as former Donald Trump White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham‘s tell-all book, I’ll Take Your Questions Now, as well as actor Stanley Tucci‘s Taste memoir. Still, Grohl’s collection of rock n’ roll tales, which range from his childhood to joining Nirvana and jamming with everyone from Paul McCartney to Iggy Pop, grabbed the top spot.
In a tweet reacting to the news, Grohl writes that he’s “honored” by the book’s success.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that I would someday be a number-one bestselling author,” Grohl says. “But it’s those same wildest dreams that I’ve followed since the day I picked up a guitar.”
Grohl recently wrapped a tour in support of The Storyteller, which featured him playing drums alongside the recording of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that I would someday be a number one bestselling author, but it’s those same wildest dreams that I’ve followed since the day I picked up a guitar. Honored. pic.twitter.com/LpZx93C2jn
The Television Academy Foundation, the charitable arm of the Television Academy, has announced the establishment of the Alex Trebek Legacy Fellowship Fund, in honor of the beloved Jeopardy! host who died of pancreatic cancer in 2020.
The foundation, launched with a gift of $50,000 from Jeopardy! Executive Producer Harry Friedman and his Harry & Judy Friedman Family Foundation, the fund will provide “a select number of need-based fellowships” to college and university educators.
The Alex Trebek Legacy Fellowships will fund these educators’ participation in the Television Academy Foundation’s annual Faculty Conference. The event, which “connects college classrooms with the television industry by providing media professors with curriculum-enhancing seminars on the latest in the art, science and business of television,” will be held virtually from November 15-17. Other funds from the charity will support the conference itself.
When the conference returns to an in-person format, the fellowships will fund educators’ travel and lodging to the event. Fittingly, one of this year’s conference panels is called, “The Art of the Game: Careers in Quiz and Game Shows,” in which 19-time Emmy winner Friedman will participate.
Initially, 25 college and/or university educators from across the country will be granted the fellowships; those who wish to apply can find out more information at TelevisionAcademy.com/faculty-seminar.
In a statement, Friedman said the fellowships “will serve as a lasting tribute to our dear friend’s life and work.”
Trebek began hosting Jeopardy! when it launched on syndication in 1984, and continued until shortly before his death at age 80.
Ray J has been released from a Miami hospital and is back home after suffering from pneumonia.
TMZ reports that he was released over the weekend. The Love & Hip Hop Hollywood star is no longer using an inhaler and needing oxygen.
As previously reported, last week the singer/actor was feeling positive about his recovery. “I appreciate all the love and support from everybody,” Ray J said in a message that his manager, David Weintraub, shared with People. “Thank you for keeping me in your prayers, and I will be back up and running soon.”
Weintraub added that the illness was “not the contagious kind,” and that Ray does not have COVID-19, despite initially being placed in the hospital’s COVID unit. “They gave him multiple COVID tests, and he tested negative for all of them,” said Weintraub.
The manager added the illness is a result of the 40-year-old entertainer being a workaholic — shooting Love & Hip Hop, developing and promoting products through his Raycon brand, and producing new music.
Shortly after announcing that he was taken to the hospital, Ray J filed to divorce his wife of five years, Princess Love. The “Wait a Minute” singer cited irreconcilable differences as cause for their separation. Ray J is seeking joint custody of his and Love’s two children — Melody, 3, and Epik, 1.
Cracks in their relationship started to show last November, when the model accused her husband of leaving her “stranded” in Las Vegas and threatened to divorce him.
This latest filing marks the third time that the pair have tried to separate. Their first separation was in May 2020, but the couple patched things up that July and Love asked the court to dismiss her request. Four months later, Ray J was the one to file for divorce.
