Movies

Questlove’s ‘Summer Of Soul’ Is Nominated For A 2022 Oscar Award And He’s Pretty Pumped About It

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Despite only being a first-time director, The Roots’ drummer Questlove has already entered rarified air as one of the nominees for the 2022 Academy Awards. he’s nominated for Best Original Documentary for his debut film, Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), which captured the subversive energy and vibrant performances of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival. The documentary is also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Film, an impressive achievement for the veteran musician.

Questlove himself seemed pretty pumped about the new nomination online — to the point of incoherence. He tweeted out an unintelligible string of characters before he was able to compose himself enough to write a tweet genuinely expressing his excitement. “Oscar Nominated Film Director Questlove……I just need to see this in print,” he wrote.

Meanwhile, over on Instagram, he needed the help of some archival video to tell his followers “THIS IS HOW I FEEL.” “Man I’m so happy about this,” he wrote in the caption. “Thank you to every last soul that assisted in this journey from 1969 to tomorrow!!!”

Should Questlove win the category (out of a field that also includes Ascension, Attica, Flee, and Writing With Fire, he’ll be halfway to an EGOT — and with Black Thought’s musical Black No More still in the works, there’s time for Quest to attach his name and position himself for a potential Tony as well. Then all he’ll need is for John Oliver to take a season off and that EGOT’s in the bag.

Billie Eilish, Beyonce, Questlove, And Other Music Stars Picked Up 2022 Oscars Nominations

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On March 27, actors and others in the film industry will be honored at the 94th annual Academy Awards. Ahead of then, the full list of Oscar nominees was revealed this morning and some folks from the music world made their mark.

Perhaps the most obvious music-related category is Best Original Song, and competing there are Beyoncé and Darius Scott (for “Be Alive” from King Richard), Billie Eilish and Finneas (for the No Time To Die theme), Lin-Manuel Miranda (for “Dos Oruguitas” from Encanto), Van Morrison (for “Down To Joy” from Belfast), and Diane Warren (for “Somehow You Do” from Four Good Days).

As for Best Original Score, Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood earned a nomination for his work on The Power Of The Dog. In the category, he’s competing against Don’t Look Up (Nicholas Britell), Dune (Hans Zimmer) Encanto (Germaine Franco), and Parallel Mothers (Alberto Iglesias).

Meanwhile, Questlove’s Summer Of Soul movie is up for Best Documentary Feature. Elsewhere, the Alana Haim-starring Licorice Pizza fared well, as it’s up for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Director (for Paul Thomas Anderson). The Lady Gaga-led House Of Gucci got a nomination, too, for Best Makeup & Hairstyling.

Check out the music-related Oscars nominations below and find the full list of all nominees here.

Best Original Song
Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Darius Scott — “Be Alive” (King Richard)
Lin-Manuel Miranda — “Dos Oruguitas” (Encanto)
Van Morrison — “Down To Joy” (Belfast)
Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell — “No Time To Die” (No Time To Die)
Diane Warren — “Somehow You Do” (Four Good Days)

Best Original Score
Don’t Look Up (Nicholas Britell)
Dune (Hans Zimmer)
Encanto (Germaine Franco)
Parallel Mothers (Alberto Iglesias)
The Power Of The Dog (Jonny Greenwood)

Best Documentary Feature
Ascension
Attica
Flee
Summer Of Soul
Writing With Fire

The Estates Of Robin Williams And George Carlin Are Both Suing Pandora For Unpaid Streaming Royalties

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Robin Williams and George Carlin are two of the most prolific, ubiquitous, and downright hilarious comedians of all time. Sadly, Williams has been dead since 2014 and Carlin since 2008. But that still hasn’t stopped streaming service giants Pandora from profiting off of their stand-up comedy recordings without paying royalties to their respective estates. At least that’s what copyright infringements lawsuits filed by both Williams’ and Carlin’s estates are claiming.

According to filings of these lawsuits obtained by Rolling Stone, Williams’ estate is seeking to get $4.1 million in damages, while Carlin’s camp is suing for $8.4 million. The lawsuits claim that Pandora knew that they were streaming the recordings, even though they didn’t have the proper licensing right to do it. Furthermore, they haven’t paid any money to the estates that preside over the comedians’ posthumous earnings.

The claims state that Pandora “gained listeners, subscribers and market share with full knowledge it did not have licenses.” In 2018, Pandora was sold to SiriusXM for a whopping $3.5 billion and recordings from comedy titans like Williams and Carlin were (and still are) a part of the service’s offerings.

The filing from Carlin’s estate cheekily states, “While Carlin would have been thrilled for his works to live on through valid licenses and payments, he would have seven dirty words to say about Pandora’s actions and willful copyright infringement, no doubt.”

For what it’s worth, Pandora also received complaints from comedians Andrew Dice Clay, Ron White, and Bill Engvall. It sounds like they need to legitimize this portion of their operation in regards to comedy recordings, or the names on that list are going to grow even bigger.

People Had More Criticism For Awkwafina After She Apologized For Her ‘Blaccent’ In Films

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Awkwafina has long been criticized for her use of a stereotypical Black voice, something that’s been referred to as a “blaccent,” in movies like Crazy Rich Asians and Ocean’s 8. Last fall, the actor and rapper even struggled to answer a question about it. Years after those movies were released, Awkwafina hopped on Twitter to address the matter and apologize for using the “blaccent.”

“I stand by the fact that I will always listen and work tirelessly to understand the history and context of AAVE [African American Vernacular English], what is deemed appropriate or backwards toward the progress of ANY and EVERY marginalized group,” she wrote. “But I must emphasize: To mock, belittle, or to be unkind in any way possible at the expense of others is: Simply. Not. My. Nature. It never has, and it never was.”

She also revealed her plans to quit Twitter thanks to a recommendation from her therapist. “I am retiring from the ingrown toenail that is Twitter,” she said. “Not retiring from anything else, even if I wanted to, and I didn’t drunkenly hit someone with a shoehorn and now escaping as a fugitive.”

As for her apology, well, it didn’t get the best reception on Twitter. In fact, her post earned her even more criticism. “All these words and not one apology,” one person wrote. “Awkwafina could have just said: ‘You were right. I did use a blaccent to make a name for myself and that was wrong. I wholeheartedly apologize, and I’ll do better from now on.’”

You can view additional responses to her apology below.

Awkwafina Addressed The Controversy Over Her ‘Blaccent’ In Films Before Retiring From Twitter

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Last fall, the usually very articulate Awkwafina struggled to answer a question about perhaps the only controversial thing about her: her use of what’s been dubbed a “blaccent.” In movies like Crazy Rich Asians and Ocean’s 8, the actress and rapper partook in the sketchy tradition wherein non-Black people adopt a stereotypical Black voice. Now, a handful of years later, she’s finally addressing it.

In a lengthy statement dropped on her Twitter feed Saturday morning, Awkwafina began by addressing the “historical context of the African American community in this country.” She wrote about how “a group that is disproportionately affected by institutionalized policies and law enforcement policies – all the while having historically and routinely seen their culture stolen, exploited and appropriated by the *dominant* culture for monetary gain without acknowledgment nor respect for where those roots come from.”

Awkwafina then tried to clarify her position in all this. “But as a non-Black POC, I stand by the fact that I will always listen and work tirelessly to understand the history and context of AAVE [African American Vernacular English], what is deemed appropriate or backwards toward the progress of ANY and EVERY marginalized group,” she wrote. “But I must emphasize: To mock, belittle, or to be unkind in any way possible at the expense of others is: Simply. Not. My. Nature. It never has, and it never was.”

She continued:

“My immigrant background allowed me to carve an American identity off the movies and TV shows I watched, the children I went to public school with, and my undying love and respect for hip hop. I think as a group, Asian Americans are still trying to figure out what that journey means for them – what is correct and where they don’t belong. And though I’m still learning and doing that personal work, I know for sure that I want to spend the rest of my career doing nothing but uplifting our communities. We do this first by failing, learning, acknowledging, hearing and empathizing… And I will continue, tirelessly, to do just that,”

A couple hours later, Awkwafina returned with another announcement. “”Well, I’ll see you in a few years, Twitter – per my therapist,” she wrote. “To my fans, thank you for continuing to love and support someone who wishes they could be a better person for you. I apologize if I ever fell short, in anything I did. You’re in my heart always.”

She then clarified that she was not retiring from the entertainment industry, just from the “ingrown toenail that is Twitter,” and that she will “avail” herself “on all other socials that don’t tell you to kill yourself!”

So we’ll be hearing from Awkwafina again, and we don’t mean a postcard.

(Via People)

300 Entertainment Makes The Leap Into Film And TV With 300 Studios And A Docuseries About Bubba Wallace

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Long known as the label home of artists like Megan Thee Stallion, Young Thug, and Thug’s YSL Records imprint, 300 Entertainment has become a juggernaut in the music world. Now, after Warner Music Group acquired 300 in December of 2021, the label looks to expand its dominance into the worlds of film and television.

Today, the company announced the launch of its new endeavor, 300 Studios, as well as its first television project: A docuseries following Nascar driver Bubba Wallace entitled Race: Bubba Wallace. Set to debut on Netflix next month, the six-episode Race will follow the life and career of the only full-time Black driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, contextualizing his position in the wake of concurrent controversies. Wallace confronted the social tensions of race when a noose was discovered in his garage stall amid protests over the police killing of George Floyd. While it was later discovered that the “noose” in question was a pull tie for the garage door, the incident still drew parallels to the very recent, violent history of anti-Black bigotry in the US.

300 Entertainment CEO Kevin Liles, a 30-year veteran of the music business, said in the press release, “I have dedicated my career to telling the story of our culture and investing in the artists and creatives who have shaped it around the world. With 300 Studios, I look forward to incubating, developing, and producing content for all formats that tell the important and inspired stories from the next generation of cultural innovators.” The announcement also notes that the studio already has 20 projects in development, including films, TV series, and podcasts.

300 Entertainment is a Warner Music company. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Neve Campbell Was Confused When Told About The Weeknd Shouting Her Out: ‘Which Weekend, Last Weekend?’

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It has been speculated that on The Weeknd’s new album Dawn FM, he sings about his reported relationship with Angelina Jolie on “Here We Go… Again.” While that’s all just hearsay at this point, what’s not a rumor is that he name-drops Scream actress Neve Campbell on the tune, as he sings, “My new girl, she a movie star / I loved her right, make her scream like Neve Campbell.” When Campbell first caught wind of the shout-out, though, she didn’t exactly know what was going on.

Campbell stopped by The Late Late Show earlier this week and James Corden asked her about the Dawn FM mention. After saying it’s “pretty crazy,” she continued, “At first, my publicist told me and she was like, ‘The Weeknd.’ I said, ‘Wait, which weekend, last weekend?’ I had no idea what she was talking about. Then I realized, ‘Oh, the guy who played at the Super Bowl, that guy!’”

Corden responded, “I can only think he’ll be really disappointed if he knows that you described him as the guy from the Super Bowl, given he’s arguably one of the biggest and best-selling artists of his generation.” Through laughter, Campbell said, “I know, I know! I’m just so bad with pop culture.”

Check out the interview clip above and listen to “Here We Go… Again” below.

Jack Black Personally Called Meat Loaf To Ask Him To Play His Dad In The ‘Tenacious D’ Movie

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New Line Cinema

Meat Loaf is obviously a legendary singer. His operatic vocals were a mainstay in my car as a teenager; you couldn’t go 10 minutes without hearing “Bat Out of Hell,” or “You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night),” or “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” or “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” (all from the same album!) on the radio. Not that I minded: his high-brow sleaze was a much-needed break from Foreigner and the Eagles.

But Meat Loaf, who sadly passed away at 74 years old this week, was also a talented actor, appearing in movies as diverse as The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Spice World, Fight Club, and Focus (which he called his best work), but my personal favorite is Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny. It’s a short scene in the 2006 film where he plays young Jack Black’s god-fearing, rock-hating dad during “Kickapoo,” but it rules. He belts out lyrics like, “You’ll become a mindless puppet / Beelzebub will pull the strings,” and it’s not every day you get a song with Meat Loaf and Ronnie James Dio.

In 2006, Meat Loaf told MTV how his role in the Tenacious D movie came together. “For five years, Jack Black has been saying he wanted me to play his father. In every interview he did he always [said], ‘I’m gonna make the movie Tenacious D, and I want to make Meat Loaf play my father.’ Every interview,” he said. “And my daughters, Pearl and Amanda, they kept reading it and [would] call and say, ‘Jack said it again, Jack said it again.’ I said, ‘When he calls me, I’ll tell him I’ll do it.’ He did call. He called me himself.”

Black was the original choice to play the “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)” singer in the VH1 made-for-TV movie Meat Loaf: To Hell and Back, but then there was a scheduling conflict and Black got mega-famous. Meat Loaf wasn’t upset, though:

I just saw him in movies that he had done, and I had heard some stuff from Tenacious D. I said, “This is the guy to play me. He’s got the energy, and he understands it.” He was going to [play me], then his career took off and [this] movie got postponed. He tried, and I said, “Well, the guy’s an idiot if he does it.” I said, “Let me see — a studio picture over the Meat Loaf story? Let me think about that for a minute. Gee, I don’t know, that’s a hard decision.”

The movie can still happen: cast Jack Black as Meat Loaf and Kyle Gass as Jim Steinman. I’d run to the theater to see that like a bat out of hell.

You can watch Meat Loaf’s scene in Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny below.

(Via MTV)

‘SNL’ Embraces Chaos And Books Willem Dafoe And Katy Perry For The Same Episode

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Over its four-and-a-half decades, Saturday Night Live has had plenty of Mad Libs-y host-musical guest(s) pairings. Al Gore and Phish. Tony Danza and Laurie Anderson. Old school entertainer Milton Berle and free jazz legend Ornette Coleman. Business magazine founder Steve Forbes and anti-capitalist rockers Rage Against the Machine. Some even become memes. There’s even an entire Twitter account dedicated to hosts improbably introducing musicians. So here’s another.

As per Deadline, for the episode of Jan. 29, the live sketch show has recruited beloved character actor Willem Dafoe and — why not! — pop goddess Katy Perry. For Perry, who is in the midst of her first Las Vegas residency, it’s her fourth time on the show. For Dafoe, it’s his first. Dafoe isn’t exactly a comedic actor, preferring serious art cinema and cutting up the occasional blockbuster, but he can be very funny. Witness The Lighthouse, in which he out-there enough to inspire an SNL sketch, well before they finally invited him on.

Besides, who doesn’t look Willem Dafoe? He can currently be seen in two big movies: dusting off his old Green Goblin duds in Spider-Man: No Way Home, which is making all the money, and Guillermo del Toro’s star-studded remake of Nightmare Alley, which is not. He had a busy 2021, appearing in yet another Wes Anderson movie (The French Dispatch), yet another Paul Schrader (The Card Counter), and yet another with perhaps his most frequent collaborator, eccentric weirdo Abel Ferrara (Siberia).

Before this hot mess begins, feel free to visit the aforementioned SNL host/musical guest(s) Twitter account, where you see such inventive sights as this.

(Via Deadline)

The Inescapable ‘Encanto’ Smash ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno’ Just Passed ‘Let It Go’ On Disney’s All-Time Hit List

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Disney

Last week, the hit Encanto song, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” scored Lin-Manuel Miranda his first-ever top-ten song when the banger managed to hit number five on the Billboard charts. It was a notable accomplishment considering Disney hasn’t been able to crack the top five since “Let It Go” from Frozen in 2014. If you’ve had the song stuck in your head since Encanto started streaming on Disney+, then you probably won’t be surprised that “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” is showing no signs of slowing down.

According to the latest Billboard charts, the Encanto hit is now at number four, which is something Let It Go was never able to achieve despite becoming the first top-five Disney hit since 1995’s “Colors of the Wind” from Pocahontas. After breaking a 19-year streak, Let It Go was taken out in a little over seven years. Via The Wrap:

In the latest data from Billboard, the Lin-Manuel Miranda hit became the highest-charting song from a Disney animated movie since 1995. With the No. 4 spot, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” ties with “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” from “The Lion King” — peaking at No. 4 in 1994 — and “Colors of the Wind” from “Pocahontas,” which peaked in the same spot in 1995.

In an interesting note, Encanto director Jared Bush recently revealed to The New York Times that the character of Bruno was originally named “Oscar” until Miranda stepped in and suggested “Bruno” after the production team realized there were way too many Oscar Madrigals in Columbia, which could’ve caused some thorny legal issues. Plus, “We Don’t Talk About Oscar,” doesn’t really have that same earworm hook that just burrows right into your skull and never leaves. Ever. Seriously, get this song out of our heads, for the love of God!

(Via The Wrap)