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The Weeknd sued for allegedly ripping off his triple-platinum hit “Call Out My Name”

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

The Weeknd is being accusing of stealing music for one of his biggest hits.

The three-time Grammy winner is being sued for allegedly plagiarizing another song for his 2018 triple-platinum single, “Call Out My Name.”

Songwriters Suniel Fox and Henry Strange filed a copyright lawsuit claiming that the hit lifted elements from their 2015 track “Vibeking,” according to Law 360. They also say they have records of correspondence with Eric White, the Weeknd’s DJ and playback engineer, who told them that the singer described their track as “fire.”

Fox and Strange are seeking all profits from “Call Out My Name” as well as legal fees, and they want to prevent The Weeknd from performing or distributing the song until a verdict is reached.

While the Canadian artist copes with the legal action, his career is being recognized by an academic institution, along with another star from Toronto.

The Weeknd and his longtime friend Drake are the subjects of a new course at Ryerson University in their hometown.

“Deconstructing Drake and The Weeknd” will begin in 2022, taught by Professor Dalton Higgins.

“Why Drake & The Weeknd one might ask?,” Higgins wrote on Instagram while mentioning courses taught in the United States examining the music of Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Prince and Outkast.

“It’s time to get our Canadian rap & R&B icons recognized & canonized academically or otherwise,” the professor maintained. “And it is CRITICAL for scholars, historians, to examine the Toronto music scene that birthed Drake/Weeknd and helped create the conditions for them to become mega successful.”

Kelly Clarkson is about to be a…step-grandma?

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

When Kelly Clarkson was married to Brandon Blackstock, she always referred to herself as having “four kids:” River and Remy, the two she had with Brandon, and Brandon’s two children from a previous marriage, Savannah and Seth. If that’s the case, then Kelly’s about to be a grandma…or a step-grandma.

As People reports, Savannah, 19, has announced that she’s pregnant with her first child. The father is her boyfriend, Quentin Lee, who’s 24. On Instagram, Savannah posted a photo of herself wearing a figure-hugging dress, which shows off her growing baby bump.

“[T]he most precious secret we’ve ever kept…” Savannah captioned the pic. She also posted two pictures of herself posing with Quentin; both are wearing cowboy hats. The two became Instagram official in November of 2019.

So far, Kelly hasn’t said anything on her socials about Savannah’s impending arrival. However, she appears to preparing for a different kind of arrival of her own: On Instagram, she’s seemingly announced that the name of her new album is When Christmas Comes Around. The first single, “Christmas Isn’t Canceled (Just You),” is out on Friday.

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First ‘SNL’ guests of the season: Owen Wilson, Kim Kardashian West, Rami Malek, and Jason Sudeikis

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

On social media, Saturday Night Live has revealed the hosts and guests for the first month of its 47th season.

Loki star Owen Wilson leads things off on October 2, with musical guest Kasey Musgraves; October 9 will see Kim Kardashian West take the stage at Studio 8H for the first time, with singer Halsey.

The October 16 show will be hosted by Rami Malek, a week after fans can see the Oscar winner as a James Bond baddie in No Time to Die. Young Thug will be the musical guest.

And on October 23, former SNL cast member-turned Ted Lasso Emmy winner Jason Sudeikis will take the stage, with musical guest Brandi Carlile.

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Jada Pinkett Smith celebrates 50th birthday on ‘Red Table Talk’; ABC to adapt Baratunde Thurston’s ‘How to Be Black’

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

The latest episode of Jada Pinkett-Smith‘s Facebook Watch show, Red Table Talk, is definitely a star-studded one.

In celebration of Jada’s 50th birthday on September 18, the actress-turned talk show host had an impressive list of celebrity friends make an appearance on her show to wish her a happy birthday, including George Clooney, Mariah Carey, Gabrielle Union, Kerry Washington, Jimmy Kimmel, Ciara, Angela Bassett and others. Some of the celebs even posed a fun question for Jada to answer during the celebration. Before the episode ended, Pinkett-Smith received a happy birthday serenade by seven-time Grammy-winning superstar Toni Braxton. Watch the full episode of Jada’s Red Table Talk birthday celebration now available on Facebook Watch.

In other news, Deadline has learned that ABC is currently developing Baratunde Thurston‘s memoir, How to Be Black, as an animated series. Like Thurston’s book, the series — written and co-executive produced by black-ish showrunner Courtney Lilly — is expected to center on the “community and family that raised a young Baratunde in 1980s Washington, D.C.” Voice casting details have yet to be announced. If greenlit, How to Be Black would be ABC’s first animated comedy series since The Goode Family in 2009.

Finally, Hulu has given a series order to Black Cake, a new drama from Women of the Movement creator Marissa Jo Cerar, with Oprah Winfrey and Aaron Kaplan, Deadline reports. Based on the upcoming book by Charmaine Wilkerson, Black Cake is described as a “murder mystery with a diverse cast of characters and a global setting.” It follows various narratives including the story of a runaway bride, who “is feared drowned or a fugitive on the run for her husband’s murder.” A release date for Black Cake has yet to be announced.

Halsey to perform on ‘Saturday Night Live’ October 9

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Looks like Halsey‘s first official post-baby TV performance is coming up next month.

Saturday Night Live has revealed the hosts and guests for the first month of its new season, which starts on October 2 on NBC. Halsey is listed as the musical guest on October 9, the same night that Kim Kardashian West hosts the show.

This will be Halsey’s fourth time on the show: They were the musical guest in 2018 and 2020, and in 2019, they pulled double duty as both the host and the musical guest. This time around, they’ll be promoting their new album, If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power.

The October 2 show will feature host Owen Wilson and musical guest Kacey Musgraves. The October 16 show will be hosted by Rami Malek, with Young Thug as musical guest. October 23 will feature former SNL cast member-turned-Emmy-winning Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis, and musical guest Brandi Carlile.

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“No one is safe. Not one of you.”: Johnny Depp decries ‘cancel culture’

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

After the one-time box office champ claimed he was being boycotted by Hollywood following his messy legal battle with ex-wife Amber Heard, Johnny Depp is speaking out again.

At a press conference at the San Sebastian Film Festival, where he was given the lifetime achievement honor known as the Donostia Award, Depp was asked about ‘cancel culture.’

“Do I feel safe myself? Yeah, I do,” Deadline quoted the Pirates of the Caribbean series star saying. “Because it’s important when you’re faced with something as mind-bogglingly bewildering, that sort of things hits you from many angles.”

The actor said the cancel culture situation is, “[s]o far out of hand now that I can promise you that no one is safe. Not one of you. No one out that door. No one is safe, as long as someone is willing to say one sentence.”

Depp added all it takes is a single allegation against a person to ruin their lives, according to Deadline.

“It takes one sentence and there’s no more ground, the carpet has been pulled. It’s not just me that this has happened to,” Depp expressed. “This type of thing has happened to women, men. Sadly at a certain point they begin to think that it’s normal. Or that it’s them. When it’s not.”

“But if you are armed with the truth, that’s all you need. It doesn’t matter if a judgement per se has taken some artistic license,” Depp said, seeming to nod at his loss in court of a libel case about spousal abuse allegations made against him by The Sun.

Depp told the assembled press, “When there’s an injustice, whether it’s against you or someone you love, or someone you believe in — stand up, don’t sit down. ‘Cause they need you.”

Elton John premieres his lockdown duet with pop star Charlie Puth, “After All”

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Elton John has unveiled his new duet with pop singer/songwriter Charlie Puth, “After All,” which will appear on Elton’s upcoming all-star album of collaborations, The Lockdown Sessions.

The two musicians met in March of 2020 at an L.A. restaurant and since Elton was already a fan of Charlie’s, they started chatting and discovered that they were neighbors. So Charlie invited Elton over and they wrote and recorded “After All,” which was the first track either of them completed during lockdown.

“Charlie is an amazing musician; we just hit it off. He’s become a friend and a friend of the family,” says Elton. “Our children love him and he loves them. Everyone we’ve worked with on The Lockdown Sessions I’ve really gotten closer to them, it’s quite amazing.”

He adds, “I played electric piano and actually wrote the song all the way through and then Charlie wrote the lyrics pretty quickly. He’s incredibly quick, Charlie. We just had an amazing chemistry in the studio.”

Puth, who says he’s been a fan of Elton his “entire life,” adds, “It is truly incredible how the melodies and chords seem to come to him instantly whenever he sits down at the piano…He is world class and the true definition of a musical genius. Being a part of his musical journey is a dream come true.”

This weekend, Elton and Charlie will both be performing in Paris during the Global Citizen Live event, which will span seven continents and feature more than 50 artists over 24 hours. You can watch it on ABC TV and ABC News Live.

On Sunday, John and Puth will go live on their TikTok pages to chat about the collaboration.

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House committee probing Jan. 6 attack could subpoena Trump aides: Sources

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol could issue its first subpoenas in the coming days, possibly targeting several former high-level aides to President Donald Trump for records and information, sources tell ABC News.

Former GOP congressman and Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows and White House aides Dan Scavino and Stephen Miller are among those of interest to the committee, sources familiar with the matter have told ABC News.

Trump’s former campaign manager Brad Parscale, who, like the other aides, remains close to the former president, could also be subpoenaed by the panel, sources said.

Sources also said that John Eastman, a lawyer who worked with Trump’s legal team last year, could also be subpoenaed for records and testimony by the committee.

Eastman was the author of a controversial memo obtained by Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Robert Costa that encouraged Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election results on Jan. 6 to keep Trump in office by rejecting the electors in nearly a dozen states.

A spokesperson for the committee declined to comment when reached by ABC News.

Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., told reporters on Monday that the first subpoenas could be issued “within a week.”

Lawmakers were briefed on the status of the probe by committee staff for more than five hours Monday night in the Capitol, meeting in person for the first time in weeks to walk through the complex inquiry via PowerPoint slides.

Thompson said the committee has scheduled testimony with persons of interest, but would not say who those people are and whether they have officially accepted the invitations from the committee.

Committee investigators are in the process of reviewing thousands of pages of documents obtained in response to requests issued in recent weeks to federal government agencies and 35 social media and communications companies.

The panel has also requested documents from the National Archives, which maintains and preserves White House records. National Archives officials said they’re in the process of reviewing the request and have yet to turn over any documents to the committee for their review.

Ray J responds to rumors of a second sex tape with Kim Kardashian: “This ain’t cool”

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Ray J‘s former manager claims he has a second sex tape of him with Kim Kardashian, and Ray isn’t happy about it.

During a podcast, Wack 100 stated that he had a tape that “was more graphic and better than the first one,” which was titled Kim Kardashian, Superstar.

That tape was recorded in 2002 while Ray and Kim were celebrating her 23rd birthday in Mexico. It was released in 2007 by Vivid Entertainment.

“This ain’t cool,” Ray J commented on Instagram about Wack’s 100’s claim. “I been staying off the Raydar — Just staying focused and being humble and thankful for all the blessings I’m receiving.”

“How can I show growth and maturity if this kinda of stuff keeps happening?” he added. “I’m a father now and my job is to be a great parent and put them first. This is not the message I want to send out.”

Ray J has two kids with Princess Love: Melody, 3, and Epik, 1.

After the sex tape was released, Kardashian filed a lawsuit against Vivid Entertainment, then later dropped the suit and settled for a reported $5 million.

Kim’s attorney, Marty Singer, says a second sex tape doesn’t exist.

“The claim that there is an unreleased sex tape is unequivocally false,” Singer told Page Six. “It is unfortunate that people make these statements to try and get their 15 minutes of fame.”

Following enormous publicity spurred by the original tape, the reality television series Keeping Up with the Kardashians debuted in October 2007, launching the multi-million dollar Kardashian brand franchise. Last year, Kim’s celebrity took a different direction when she starred in the Oxygen channel documentary The Justice Project.

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Nicole Richie sets hair on fire while blowing out birthday candles

September 24, 2021September 22, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Nicole Richie is bringing in her 40s on fire — literally.

The actress celebrated her birthday on Tuesday and shared a short clip of herself blowing out the candles on her cake.

In the video, which was shared on Instagram, Nicole’s cheered on by people off camera. However, the cheers quickly turn to scream, when her hair dangles into the flames of the still-lit candles, causing both sides of her hair to catch on fire. While someone sitting next to her was able to quickly pat out one side, the other side appeared to get a bit worse before fizzling out.

The mom of two jokingly captioned the snippet, “Well… so far 40 is [fire emoji].”

Many of Richie’s celebrity friends took to the comments to wish her a “happy birthday” including Chelsea Handler and Queer Eye star Antoni Porowski, who wrote, “I feel awful for laughing I’m sry also happy birthday!!”

Meanwhile Katherine Power, who apparently witnessed the event in person, quipped, “A moment I’ll never forget.”

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