Month: June 2021

The latest trailer for Amazon’s Prime Day Show features a few notable musical guests. H.E.R., Kid Cudi, and Billie Eilish are all a part of the lineup for Amazon’s three-day special event. The trailer gives audiences a look at what to expect from each artist as they take the stage.

Based on what’s revealed so far, H.E.R.’s performance experience looks to bring her signature elegance. Her segment of the special is set to take place in the classic Dunbar Hotel in Los Angeles, which closed down in the 1970s. The historic site will transform as a backdrop for the “Damage” singer during her portion of the Amazon special.

 Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

When Kid Cudi hits the screen, he intends to take the viewers on an out-of-this-world experience. Cudi’s performance will see the Man on the Moon III rapper teaming up with International Space Orchestra to deliver what looks to be a very unique experience. In the trailer, viewers can see Kid Cudi dripped in an orange NASA jumpsuit while his song “Tequila Shots” plays in the background.

Billie Eilish’s part of the three-day special will feature more cinematic elements. The “Ocean Eyes” singer looks to bring a Paris-based aesthetic to her performance. In the trailer, Eilish delivers a rendition of “Lost Cause,” while wandering many Parisian locations.

Audiences can catch Amazon’s three-day Prime Day Show special when it drops on June 17th. Who’s performance are you looking forward to the most? 

[via]

Outspoken host of TNT’s Inside the NBA, Charles Barkley, criticized the network for taking innocent jokes too seriously during an interview on 106.7 The Fan. The former NBA player and TNT contributor has never been scared to speak his mind and often comes under fire for his opposing opinions, though now his words have caused workplace tension.

As Barkley states, he is now prohibited from speaking about the city of San Antonio on set after he made remarks about the weight of the women in the city.

Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for TNT

In response to the silencing, Barkley is coming after the cancel culture-esque approach of the network. Clearly angry and frustrated, Barkley blasted the current media climate as boring and relishes in the fact that he’ll retire from media when he turns 60 in two years: “You can’t even have fun nowadays without these jackasses trying to get you canceled and things like that,” he vents, speaking with The Fan. “And then they can kiss my ass.”

“First of all, I didn’t call anybody personally fat in San Antonio, I was just joking around,” Barkley said in his defense. He continues to describe his surprise when the network confronted him,  as it’s not the first time the basketball legend has made such jokes: “we’ve been having fun with this for probably 10, 15 years!” He maintains that the people of San Antonio appreciated the running joke, even claiming that they “made t-shirts.” 

Barkley also states that articles written about his comments ultimately led to TNT taking action. Do you think Barkley has a strong case against TNT or did the network do the right thing? Let us know and check out the clip below.

[via]

Tech mogul and Tesla founder Elon Musk has been selling off his extensive real estate portfolio in recent months in order to concentrate focus on his new venture: Mars. The amassed portfolio, which includes high-profile homes like the one of late actor Gene Wilder, is worth over $100 million and has been selling easily- though Musk has held on to a certain San Francisco property longer than the others.

However, Musk seems to be letting go as the property is now listed back on the market for a whopping $37.5 million. The 16,000 square foot property just south of San Francisco has long been a favorite place for the world’s second-richest man.

 FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

He originally put the home, which he refers to as his “special place,” on the market with the rest of his portfolio last year — though it didn’t initially sell. He then took it off the market only to now announce he is attempting to sell it once again in a statement: “Decided to sell my last remaining house. Just needs to go to a large family who will live there. It’s a special place.” The property is the final home that Musk has yet to part with. 

The Tesla and SpaceX founder bought the home in 2017 for $23.4 million, and he says he often rented it out for special events. The house is over 100 years old and sits on 47 acres of land. 

Musk, now without his once substantial collection of properties, is looking to space as his new frontier.

[via]

The world has been patiently awaiting SZA’s sophomore album ever since she concluded her CTRL era. Talking a long time away from music to focus on perfecting her next project to share with the world, she finally returned last summer with the lead single from her forthcoming project “Hit Different” with Ty Dolla Sign. 

She followed up with her smash hit “Good Days,” and is set to release the new album sometime this year. In the meantime, she’s set to fans to a virtual full-set performance in celebration of the fourth anniversary of her acclaimed debut project CTRL on June 17th. In a new interview with Complex, the songstress talked about how important manifestation is. She touched on speaking two major accomplishments into existence, namely a pledge from Travis Scott to join her for a long-awaited performance of “Love Galore” and a Tyler, the Creator collab.

Brian Ach/Getty Images for Something in the Water

Speaking candidly about how she was able to manifest a “Love Galore” performance with Travis on Twitter, she explained, “I’m very surprised. I just think he’s so cool. I just never imagined that someone would be down to do stuff, randomly. I still can’t even believe that I got him on the song and that he loves my music. I really am a super fan, like a genuine fan. It’s funny. It makes me really happy.”

When asked about how important manifestations have been for her, she divulged, “Like, I was talking about this song that got leaked on the internet yesterday. Well, it didn’t get leaked yesterday, but I was talking about it yesterday. It was this Jodie Foster song and it was over an old Tyler, the Creator beat from like 2016.”

She continued, “I was talking about it and Tyler called me yesterday to send me new stuff. And I was like, “That’s so random.” From the sounds of it, it seems the two beloved artists are working together on ~something.~ As of right now, however, its no telling when we’ll be getting the collab. 

As for Tyler, he shared a new teaser to his social media yesterday, likely signaling the start of his album rollout. With both SZA and Tyler potentially dropping this year, it leaves plenty of room for a collaboration between the two. 

Are you looking forward to hearing SZA x Tyler one day? Let us know down in the comments. 

[via]

Boosie Badazz is known to have quite a controversial presence on social media, which has resulted in the constant suspension of his main Instagram account over the years. He revealed in a video interview with VladTV that he asked Tallahassee R&B singer T-Pain for help, asking to speak directly with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself, in getting back access to his account.

After he was kicked off his main Instagram account in late March for posting a behind-the-scenes clip of a music video he was filming with Charlotte rapper DaBaby, Boosie took to Twitter with choice words for the Facebook CEO.

Prior to the March suspension, in which he openly called for someone who would be willing to take a punch to the face for money, he was last suspended from Instagram in August. The video of the smack earned the participant the agreed-upon amount for the blow, and he was tipped by DaBaby for partaking in it. The clip ended up being a stunt to promote Boosie and Dababy’s “Period” single, but Instagram found the video too alarming and violent to keep on its platform, promptly removing it and suspending his main account again.

In the video interview, Boosie talks about the music video incident and the ensuing consequences that affected his social media presence. He said he saw T-Pain go on Instagram Live with Zuckerberg following the viral moment that spurred when he shared a video of his unanswered DMs from over the years on the app. You can check out the video interview below. 

You can keep up with Boosie’s hijinks at his current secondary Instagram account, @hesbackagain2021.

Award shows have been forced into hosting socially distant or virtual events in the past year. The Grammys returned partially this year, along with other prestigious ceremonies in the entertainment industry. The BET Awards are set to take place later this month and they’ve finally announced who will be hosting the big event — Taraji P. Henson. The Empire star will be holding down hosting duties on Sunday, June 27th at the Microsoft Theatre in L.A.

 Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

“For more than 20 years, the BET Awards have been a celebration of Black creativity, art and excellence,” said Taraji P. Henson in a statement. “Returning live, this year’s show will be unlike anything we have ever seen before, and I am honored to be sharing the stage with so many powerful and prolific women in music and entertainment. The BET Awards will once again be at the forefront of Black culture.”

The 2021 BET Awards will honor Queen Latifah with the Lifetime Achievement Award which aligns with the ceremony’s theme, “The Year Of Black Woman.” The ceremony will be celebrating the impact and contributions made by Black women in pushing the culture forward.

“Black women have been essential drivers of change throughout history, from the political sphere to the cultural zeitgeist,” Connie Orlando, EVP Specials, Music Programming & Music Strategy at BET, told ET. “The BET Awards is the ultimate celebration of Black culture, and we are looking forward to spotlighting and celebrating Black women during this year’s show, recognizing them for everything they’ve accomplished and applauding them for what’s to come.”

Peep the list of nominees here.