Pop

Taylor Swift And Bad Bunny Are Among The Year’s 10 Highest-Paid Entertainers, Behind Classic Rockers And Cartoon Creators

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Taylor Swift Grammys 2023
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Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny were all smiles at the 2023 Grammys on February 5, and Forbes shed light on one possible reason for their cheery spirits.

The publication shared its annual list of the world’s top 10 highest-paid entertainers today, February 12, and Swift made the cut for the sixth time in her career, including the No. 1 spot in 2019. This year, Swift ranks No. 9, but she’s also notably the only woman on the list.

“Despite the success of Midnights and the anticipation for Eras (which hints at an even better 2023), the pop icon scored most of her $92 million in earnings from music she’d released in years past,” Forbes wrote. “The 33-year-old’s back catalog made up an estimated 70% of her pay, including profits from streaming and album sales. (Universal Music Group, which gets 3% of its revenue from Swift, sold $50 million worth of physical albums in 2022, per a JP Morgan analyst report).”

Right below Swift is Bad Bunny in tenth:

“The only true newcomer to this year’s list: Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny, who sold $400 million worth of tickets to his two tours — the first in the spring in the US, the second in the fall across the States plus Latin America — according to concert tracker Pollstar. His second tour, dubbed The World’s Hottest, was an expensive affair. It took 35 to 40 trucks to cart gear and crew from venue to venue across the U.S. and then used three planes — including a 747 cargo jet — to transport everything for the Latin American leg, according to sources with knowledge of the tour. That kind of spectacle may have helped sales but meant fewer dollars in the star’s pocket. Including endorsements, Bad Bunny earned $88 million.”

Unlike Bad Bunny and Swift, Forbes‘ highest-earning entertainer isn’t exactly at the forefront of the 2023 cultural zeitgeist. Genesis reportedly pocketed $230 million followed by Sting in second place at $210 million.

The rest of the list rounded out as follows: Tyler Perry ($175 million), South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone ($160 million), The Simpsons co-creators James L. Brooks and Matt Groening ($105 million), Brad Pitt ($100 million), Rolling Stones ($98 million), and James Cameron ($95 million).

Swift is readying to start her expansive Eras Tour on March 17 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Conversely, Bad Bunny told Billboard in December that he views 2023 as a time to rest “for my physical health, my mental health, my emotional health, enjoy all my achievements.” But it won’t totally be an off year, as he’s scheduled to become the first-ever Latin headliner at Coachella.

Post Malone’s Tattoos Were Apparently Unacceptable At One Australian Bar

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Post Malone New Zealand January 2023
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Post Malone is a multifaceted entertainer. His multiplatinum music — most recently, Twelve Carat Toothache — can sometimes be an afterthought. That’s a credit to his personality, not a knock on his artistry.

Posty’s headlining Twelve Carat Toothache Tour involved an on-stage gender reveal and a wedding, and he brought his showmanship as a supporting act on Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Australian stadium run that wrapped last night, February 12.

Post drank beer from a fan’s shoe while performing in Sydney, Australia’s Accor Stadium on February 5. Unfortunately, he was not allowed to enjoy a drink at QT Perth’s rooftop bar this weekend because of his signature facial ink.

“They turned me away for my tattoos. I’ve never really experienced anything like that,” Post told The West Australian, which also relayed the QT rooftop dress standards lists “face, neck and offensive tattoos” as “strictly not permitted.”

The QT issued an apology to the publication: “At QT, we aim to welcome everyone and celebrate the uniqueness of each individual. QT has recognized this for many years. However, on Saturday night, our third-party security did not exercise the appropriate discretion and we take full responsibility for this. We sincerely apologize to the individuals affected.”

Post added to his ink collection last October with a tattoo reportedly honoring his infant daughter on his forehead.

As a GQ cover star in 2020, the 27-year-old star bluntly described why he started getting so many tattoos in the first place, especially on his face.

“I’m a ugly-ass motherf*cker,” he said back then. “It does maybe come from a place of insecurity, to where I don’t like how I look, so I’m going to put something cool on there so I can look at myself and say, ‘You look cool, kid,’ and have a modicum of self-confidence, when it comes to my appearance.”

Donald Trump Gave His Unsolicited Opinion On Rihanna’s Super Bowl Halftime Show, Which He Somehow Really, Really Hated

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Donald Trump November 2022
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Donald Trump is an elite troll, so why would he sit out Super Bowl LVII? He was even teed up by Texas congressman and Trump supporter Ronny Jackson’s Rihanna slander last week.

As relayed by The Hill, Trump gave his unsolicited opinion on Rihanna’s Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show last night, February 12.

“EPIC FAIL: Rihanna gave, without question, the single worst Halftime Show in Super Bowl history,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “This after insulting far more than half of our Nation, which is already in serious DECLINE, with her foul and insulting language.” Trump added, “So much for her ‘Stylist!’”

The latter bit was a reference to his Truth Social post from Thursday, February 9, again noted by The Hill: “Without her ‘Stylist’ she’d be NOTHING. Bad everything, and NO TALENT!”

Trump is likely holding a grudge over Rihanna’s consistent history of criticizing him, including her very fashionable celebration of Trump losing the 2020 US presidential election.

California Representatives Maxine Waters and Ted Lieu came to Rihanna’s defense:

Outside of the political arena, the response to Rihanna’s 12-song halftime performance was overwhelmingly positive.

The Fenty boss and nine-time Grammy winner revealed she’s pregnant with her second child, which her representatives later confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. Rihanna and ASAP Rocky welcomed their first child together, a son, last May. And nobody enjoyed Rihanna’s dazzling return to the stage more than Rocky.

Watch Rihanna’s full Super Bowl LVII halftime performance here.

ASAP Rocky Was Rihanna’s Biggest Fan During Her Super Bowl LVII Halftime Performance

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ASAP Rocky Amazon Music December 2022
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The Kansas City Chiefs topped the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in Super Bowl LVII on Sunday night, February 12, but for millions of people, Rihanna’s halftime performance was the one and only reason to watch.

Rihanna tore through 12 of her hits, reminding everyone just how deep her bag is. ASAP Rocky was spotted on the field, and he looked like a giddy fan hearing “Diamond” live for the first time.

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A$AP Rocky is Rihanna’s biggest fan #halftimeshow #superbowl #rihannahalftimeshow

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At the end of her set, Rihanna appeared to hint that she’s pregnant with her and Rocky’s second child. Her representatives later confirmed her pregnancy to The Hollywood Reporter once the second half of the game was underway.

Rihanna and Rocky welcomed their son last May. During her Apple Music press conference last week, Rihanna shared with Nadeska how becoming a mother influenced her decision to take on the coveted Super Bowl halftime stage.

“When you become a mom, there’s something that just happens where you feel like you could take on the world, you can do anything,” Rihanna said. “The Super Bowl is one of the biggest stages in the world, so as scary as that was because I haven’t been on stage in seven years, there’s something exhilarating about the challenge of it all. It’s important for me to do this this year. It’s important for representation. It’s important for my son to see that.”

Rocky also shared insight into the moment with Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe in January.

“I’m just as excited as you guys, if not more. I’m super excited. This is huge. This is incredible. I’m so glad that my lady’s back making music again and whatnot, and getting back out there,’ Rocky told Lowe, adding, “It’s just incredible, especially for both of us — it is a good year for both of us to be more active and be out there. But the Super Bowl is huge, and her being the creative she is, she going to bring it, man.”

There had been rampant speculation that Rihanna’s first performance in seven years would trigger an album or tour announcement. Instead, Rih doubled down on motherhood and living her best life with Rocky.

Watch the full Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show here.

Rihanna Actually Hinted At Her Super Bowl Pregnancy Announcement Days Before The Halftime Show Baby Bump Reveal

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During her Super Bowl Halftime Show performance last night (February 12), Rihanna came through with something you don’t see in that environment every day: a pregnancy announcement. While that news shocked the entertainment world, Rihanna actually appears to have publicly hinted at it days before the big game.

A preview clip of Rihanna’s NFL+ interview with CBS Mornings co-host and former NFL player Nate Burleson was shared on February 10. Burleson’s final question of the video was, “People want to know: Are there any surprises?” Rihanna responded, “I’m thinking about bringing someone. I’m not sure.” Burleson asked if she’d tell him about it off-camera and she laughingly shut that request down.

Burleson later addressed this moment on Twitter. Last night, a Twitter user wrote, “So when #rihanna told @nateburleson there was gonna be a surprise guest at the halftime show, I’m betting that the BABY is the surprise guest #JustSayin #SuperBowl.” He shared the tweet and added, “Bingo,” along with a bullseye emoji. In another tweet responding to a similar post, he added, “She had that preggo glow…”

The baby will be Rihanna and ASAP Rocky’s second. Once the pregnancy was revealed, people came through with memes and jokes about what it was like for the kid inside of their mother’s womb during the halftime performance.

People Had Jokes About What Rihanna’s Newly Announced Baby Was Doing During Her Super Bowl Halftime Show

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Rihanna Super Bowl Halftime Show 2023
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Yesterday (February 12) was huge for Rihanna. Obviously, she performed the halftime show at Super Bowl LVII, hosted in Glendale, Arizona’s State Farm Stadium. Perhaps of more personal significance, though, was that Rihanna took the opportunity to announce that she’s pregnant with her and ASAP Rocky’s second baby (after hinting at it days before). While it wasn’t explicitly clear right away that Rihanna had announced a pregnancy on stage, representatives later confirmed it.

After Rihanna dropped that bit of news, halftime show viewers couldn’t help but wonder: What did it look like for baby No. 2 inside of Rihanna’s womb, as the singer moved around and put on her epic performance? Naturally, the internet came through with memes aplenty, mostly communicating one of two ideas: The baby was either dancing and enjoying itself or being uncontrollably jostled inside their mother. Here are examples of each take:

When the new baby is born, Rihanna and Rocky’s two children will be close in age, as their first child was only just born back in May 2022. The two haven’t offered many details about their first kid yet, although in December, Rihanna did share an adorable video of the baby strapped in a car seat and doing cute baby stuff.

Check out some more reactions below.

Lizzo Finally Spilled About How She And Adele Got ‘Lit’ Together With ‘Two Flasks’ At The Grammys

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Lizzo is still on cloud nine over her Grammy win. Last Sunday (February 5), the hitmaker took home the Grammy Award for Record Of The Year for her hit single, “About Damn Time.”

Today (February 10), she appeared on The Graham Norton Show to discuss the events that went down when the cameras weren’t rolling. As one can expect, waiting to hear if you won an award can be anxiety-inducing. Luckily, Lizzo had just the fix to calm her nerves.

During Lizzo’s appearance on the show, Norton pointed out a jewelry-studded flask at Lizzo’s table in a picture taken at the awards ceremony.

“I had two flasks for me, and one for Adele,” she revealed. “It was lit.”

Norton then asked, “Why did you have to bring a hit flask?”

Lizzo replied, saying, “Because there’s not, like, a bar. I’m like, ‘Come on, y’all, we need more alcohol.’ It’s Grammys night, we’re all stressed.”

Shania Twain, who also appeared on Norton alongside Lizzo, and was seated at the same table as Lizzo during the Grammys, complimented Lizzo’s “shiny” and “bedazzled” flask.

You can check out the clip above.

Lizzo is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Rihanna Comforted Patrick Mahomes After Brandon Marshall’s Prank Involving Her: ‘I Still Think You’re Great’

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Rihanna revealed a lot in her Apple Music interview about the Super Bowl Halftime Show yesterday, February 9. She talked about the struggles of having to cram an electrifying performance into just 13 minutes, which made her change the setlist a whopping 39 times.

The “Umbrella” singer also caught up with football player Brandon Marshall that same day at a press event. He was feeling like a prankster, though; earlier that week, he asked Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, “Rihanna came out and said that you are the greatest quarterback ever. Hearing that, how does that make you feel?”

“It makes you feel great,” Mahomes answered. “Whatever Rihanna says is like the gospels. So I’m glad that she went with me for that honor.”

“She didn’t. I was messing with you,” Marshall revealed.

When Marshall informed her of this, Rihanna comforted Mahomes by offering apologies, “I’m so sorry you went through that,” she said. “I still think you’re great.” Upon learning about the lie, she said, “That’s so mean. He is mean, OK.”

In her Apple Music interview yesterday, Rihanna also discussed new material. “Musically, I’m feeling open. I’m feeling open to exploring, discovering, creating things that are new. Things that are different. Things that are off, weird, might not ever make sense to my fans [or] the people that know the music that I put out. I just wanna play. I wanna have fun. I want to have to fun with music.”

What Is An EGOT And What Does It Stand For?

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Viola Davis recently became the 18th member to join the honorary EGOT club after she won a Grammy last weekend for the audiobook version of her memoir. However, some casual fans might be curious: What exactly is an EGOT?

First things first, the EGOT stands for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. For somebody to ‘EGOT,’ it means that person has to win (at least one) of each of those four awards. And it’s very difficult to do, but there are a ton of celebrities currently that are only one award shy of joining Davis.

There are also other special honors in the entertainment world. In addition to the EGOT, there is the ESOT — which swaps out someone not needing to win a Grammy but a Screen Actors Guild Award instead.

In this category, there are only ten winners so far. Davis is already one of them, as she achieved her ESOT in 2017.

Lastly, there is the prestigious PEGOT, which means all of the former EGOT winners would have had to win either a Peabody award or a Pulitzer.

There are only five people that have done so: Barbra Streisand, Mike Nichols, Rita Moreno (Peabody winners), Richard Rodgers, and Marvin Hamlisch (Pulitzer winners).