Swizz Beatz, D-Nice and More Honored at Fifth Annual Culture Creators Brunch

On Saturday afternoon (June 26), the fifth annual Culture Creators Innovators and Leaders Brunch highlighted the wins of several prominent leaders within the Black community. Sponsored by YouTube, the festivities featured award recipients and hip-hop luminaries Swizz Beatz and D-Nice at the Beverly Hills Hilton hotel in California.

Hosted by DeMarco Morgan and Tanika Ray, Culture Creators opened its doors for industry players to mingle, celebrate and rejoice their colleagues’ wins after a year’s absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s ceremony had strict measures, requiring attendees to either show their vaccination cards before their arrival and provide negative COVID tests. They also asked invitees to take temperature checks before proceeding into the venue.

Fans of Swizz Beatz were in for a treat. Honored with the Icon award, a video montage showcased Swizz’s lofty achievements in the music space. Ahead of his speech, Swizz’s son, Prince Nasir Dean, had glowing remarks for his father. He highlighted his notable feats including his Grammy wins, acclaim in the art space with No Commission, and his beloved musical showdown Verzuz.

Accepting the Icon Award, Swizz exuded humility when speaking on his newest accolade. Fresh off a 17-hour flight from Saudi Arabia, he touched on the importance of learning more and remaining hungry even after noteworthy victories. “All though we might have the accolades, and we might have the track record, there’s always going to be somebody with a new idea that can reshape your whole future,” he said during his acceptance speech. “I want to continue to inspire and tell all the creators not to be scared.”

Comedian Royale Watkins presented D-Nice with the Culture Creator Innovators Award for his impressive run last year. At the start of the pandemic, Nice knitted together a nice marathon set on Instagram Live with R&B, Disco, and Funk leading the way. Peaking at a staggering 160,000 viewers, D-Nice quipped about how Club Quarantine originally began with 200 people on his Instagram Live and later evolved into a safe space for many, including  Michelle Obama, Rihanna, Dwayne Wade, Bernie Sanders, and more,

“I’ll tell you a little secret about [Michelle Obama]. She was there because I called,” he revealed. “It goes back to being kind to people. That’s why a lot of those people were there, like Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders.”

Along with Beatz and D-Nice, music industry vet Shanti Das received the Health and Wellness Award. Das started an organization called Silence the Shame, which advocates for mental health awareness. During her speech, she spoke about how she once considered suicide and how receiving his honor was a gratifying moment. She thanked John Platt (CEO and chairman of Sony ATV) and Sony Music for making Silence the Shame one of the organizations recognized by Sony’s social justice fund.

MBK Entertainment’s Jeff Robinson and Jeanine McClean received YouTube’s Culture Creators Award. Jimmy Jam presented the award to them both, while H.E.R. made an appearance to cheer on her support system. She chimed in on their efforts in building her career as an R&B powerhouse and relayed how MBK operates as a family.

“Jeff talks the talk and walks the walk,” she said. “He pushes me out of my comfort zone constantly. I feel like I’m so protected as an artist, and that’s a rare thing.” Added Jeanine, “We are truly a family and always making sure that those behind us are given opportunities.” Other honorees of the night included Zerina Akers, George Wells, Rikki Hughes, Silence the Shame, Cari Champion, Stefani Brown-James, Stefanie Brown-James, and Kudzi Chikumbu.

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Olivia Rodrigo Shares a Scary Story While Suffering Through Very Spicy Wings: Watch

Olivia Rodrigo is “not at all” a fan of hot sauce, but she worked her way through several increasingly spicy vegan wings while answering questions in an episode of Hot Ones anyway.

Rodrigo’s appearance on the YouTube series, on which guests join host Sean Evans in eating a progressively hot wing for every question asked,  began with the “Drivers License” singer admitting that she’s “the worst with spice. I think that bell peppers are spicy.”

Against all odds, Rodrigo pushed through the levels of heat as she answered questions about her first talent show, music video concepts, ghosts and the highs and lows from a recent trip that started off shaky but ended with her debut awards show performance.

At 8 years old, Rodrigo was the star of the Boys and Girls Club “Idol” stage: “They gave me a trophy that was as tall as me at the end, and they gave me a big check. It was like $100, but at eight years old I was like, ‘Oh my god, I’m rich. I can buy an American Girl doll,’” she recalled. By 18, she was performing her debut hit single on the Brit Awards stage.

But ahead of the Brits, the obvious highlight of her trip to London in May, she had a rough time in quarantine.

“We were quarantining in this little, real 18th century English cottage in the countryside, and it was so cold and we couldn’t figure out how to turn on the central air and heating, but they had a fireplace so we lit the fireplace all the time and that’s how we kept warm,” she said on Hot Ones.

Rodrigo recalled, “I just remember one day waking up and it was so smoky. I think I got mild carbon monoxide poisoning ’cause the whole day, I couldn’t stop throwing up in an English countryside house. So that’s definitely a lowlight. I recovered. I don’t know if I had carbon monoxide poisoning, but I was very sick for a day.”

Rodrigo ended up being OK after that experience. But between bites of spicy wings, the singer-songwriter shared another scary story — this time,  a supernatural encounter her mother had years ago.

“I don’t f— with ghosts and they don’t f— with me,” Rodrigo made clear, but said, “My mom grew up in Wisconsin, and her parents had this nice house that they got for really cheap. One day, she woke up to go to the bathroom and she saw a man standing at the top of the stairs, and she didn’t tell anyone until 25 years later, and my grandma was like, ‘Oh, you know the reason we got the house for so cheap was because somebody died in the basement — a man died in the basement.’”

See if Rodrigo can live past the Scorpion Disco wing and make it to The Last Dab in the full interview below.

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Ariana Grande Shares Throwback Photo for Her Birthday — And Beyonce Has One, Too

Ariana Grande celebrated her 28th birthday on Saturday (June 26) with a kind message to her “tiny” self.

“hbd tiny, i am taking care of you !” she wrote to an adorable, wide-eyed baby picture of herself on Instagram.

And someone else whipped out a throwback photo of Grande on her birthday, too: Beyoncé.

Beyoncé updated the homepage of her official website in dedication of “POV” singer, with big birthday wishes — “HAPPY BIRTHDAY ARIANA GRANDE” — and what appears to be an old headshot of a younger Grande, who was already rocking the signature ponytail. (Beyoncé has been using her website to pay tribute to a number of artists, as well as her own family members, on their birthdays.)

Birthday messages came pouring in for the pop star on social media throughout the day on Saturday — including a heartfelt post from her brother, Frankie Grande.

“Ariana you are always there for me, you lift me up when I am down, you make me smile and laugh until my cheeks hurt, and you bring me and everyone you meet such joy… so today I celebrate you and the remarkable person you are! I love you with my whole heart and wish you the greatest day ever. You deserve it. HBD sis,” he wrote.

Grande’s birthday was also celebrated with a super sweet compliment, though on the wrong day, by Katy Perry.

“happiest birthday to the best living vocalist on earth @ArianaGrande fight me if you think different,” Perry tweeted on Friday before fans were quick to make her aware that she was a little ahead of schedule.

“s— im early idc,” she responded.

See Grande’s childhood snapshot below, and head over to Beyoncé’s website to get a glimpse at Grande’s child actor days.

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As Concerts Return, Death of Classical Brings Beethoven to Life In a Cemetery After Dark

New York’s Death of Classical performance series returned Friday (June 25) evening within Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery with Gil Shaham and the Knights taking on Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61. It’s a rarity to make out any constellation in New York City, so when the Big Dipper appeared, tilting down above the six-piece “pocket orchestra,” it was hard not to be arrested by the simple pleasure of live music under the night sky after a difficult year. As for concert settings, this one brought the drama. Pink and blue lights gently illuminated the shadowy stonework of the Gothic Arch towering behind the performers, making it seem like a Gothic Magic Kingdom made especially for the event.

Green-Wood Cemetery itself is a New York City institution, a 183-year-old graveyard in Greenwood Heights where musical icons from Leonard Bernstein to Pop Smoke are buried (the former was briefly feted with a small performance of William Bolcom’s “Lenny In Spats”). And although the idea of Death of Classical predates the pandemic, there was an unmistakable feeling of post-quarantine lightness to the entire event, undoubtedly aided by the addition of whisky, mezcal and gin tastings via various craft distilleries.

Prior to Ludwig Van, the Grand St. Stompers trotted out swing jazz and American songbook classics such as “Love Is Just Around the Corner” and “Keepin’ Out of Mischief Now” as attendees idled among graves, eying the headstones and mausoleums nestled into the rolling hills like a stony, silent Shire.

When dark fell, the boozy spirits were whisked away to make way for an after-dark mingling of visitors and residents. Some opted to sit on folding chairs on the pavement, while the less superstitious respectfully settled among the surprisingly soft grass around the monuments.

The performance itself was transcendent, with the setting providing a sense of sepulchral Zen as Gil Shaham and the Knights delivered an energetic, playful and well-paced Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61, which they recorded (along with a violin concerto from Brahms) for a recent album. While the arrangement for six players was partially due to the pandemic, Shaham explained it had historical precedent; when presented in 19th century living rooms for entertainment, this particular Beethoven piece would have been played by a similarly scaled back group.

When it wrapped, the attendees wandered back into the world of the living as the un-distilled spirits returned to their final resting places, at least for the time being. On July 8-9, Death of Classical creator/curator Andrew Ousley brings pianist Min Kwon to Green-Wood for America/Beautiful, a collection of variations on “America the Beautiful” performed within the cemetery’s catacombs.

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Travis Barker ‘Might Fly Again’ After Surviving 2008 Plane Crash

Travis Barker is considering one day getting on an airplane again, nearly 13 years after being involved in a devastating plane crash that killed four passengers.

The 2008 plane crash killed his assistant Chris Baker, security guard Charles Monroe Still Jr. and pilots Sarah Lemmon and James Bland.

The fiery accident led to a three-month hospitalization for Barker, who had burns on 65% of his body and required 26 surgeries and several skin grafts. His friend and musical parter DJ AM (Adam Goldstein) was also injured in the crash and died a year later from a drug overdose.

But on Friday (June 25), with an airplane emoji, the Blink-182 drummer declared in a tweet, “I might fly again.”

Last month, in an interview with Men’s Health magazine, Barker — who hasn’t been on a plane since the day of the crash in 2008 — said surviving the accident, and the long recovery that followed, inspired him to get clean.

“People are always like, ‘Did you go to rehab?’” Barker, who had developed such a high opioid tolerance that he’d sometimes wake up during surgery, said. “And I [say], ‘No, I was in a plane crash.’ That was my rehab. Lose three of your friends and almost die? That was my wake-up call. If I wasn’t in a crash, I would have probably never quit.”

“There’s a million things that could happen to me,” he added in the interview. “I could die riding my skateboard. I could get in a car accident. I could get shot. Anything could happen. I could have a brain aneurysm and die. So why should I still be afraid of airplanes?”

Of flying again, he told the magazine, “I have to … I want to make the choice to try and overcome it.”

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Biden promises housing, mortuary help for Surfside building collapse victims

President Joe Biden said he spoke with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday and promised federal help for Surfside, where 159 people are unaccounted for and four are confirmed dead … Click to Continue »
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Kelly Clarkson Wins Twice at 2021 Daytime Emmy Awards

Kelly Clarkson won twice at the 48th annual Daytime Emmy Awards, which aired Friday (June 25) on CBS. The syndicated The Kelly Clarkson Show took outstanding talk show, entertainment, in its second season. Clarkson also won outstanding entertainment talk show host, an award she won last year too.

In the series category, Clarkson’s show beat The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which had won eight times in the category, including the last two years in a row.

Clarkson has now won as many Daytime Emmys (three) as she has Grammys, even though she has been a recording star much longer (since 2002).

Sheryl Underwood, co-host of CBS’ The Talk, hosted the Daytime Emmys for the fifth time.

Red Table Talk won outstanding informative talk show, beating, among others, Red Table Talk: The Estefans. Jada Pinkett Smith co-hosts Red Table Talk with her daughter, “Whip My Hair” hitmaker Willow Smith, and her mom, Adrienne Banfield-Norris. Gloria Estefan co-hosts Red Table Talk: The Estefans with her daughters Emily and Lili Estefan. Both shows air on Facebook Watch.

CBS Sunday Morning, which frequently runs profiles of top music artists, won outstanding morning show. The show’s host, Jane Pauley, formerly co-hosted NBC’s Today show, one of the other nominees in this category.

The Daytime Emmys included tributes to three TV legends who died in the past year: Regis Philbin, Alex Trebek and Larry King. First lady Dr. Jill Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau were surprise guests in the tribute to Trebek (who was born in Canada). Robin Roberts and actor Ken Jeong also participated in the Trebek tribute. Kathie Lee Gifford saluted her longtime colleague Philbin. Martha Stewart remembered King, whose long-running talk show on CNN featured countless music stars “for the full hour,” to use King’s well-worn phrase.

Trebek and King also won posthumous competitive awards. Trebek won outstanding game show host for Jeopardy! His children Matt and Emily accepted the award. King won outstanding informative talk show host for Larry King Now. His sons Chance and Cannon accepted the award.

The Daytime Emmy Awards have recognized outstanding achievements in daytime programming since 1974. The awards are presented to individuals and programs broadcast between 2 a.m. and 6 p.m., as well as certain categories of digital and syndicated programming of similar content.

Awards for daytime children’s programming, animation, and daytime lifestyle programming will be presented in separate ceremonies in July.

Here’s a partial list of winners from the 48th annual Daytime Emmys:

Outstanding game show: Jeopardy!, syndicated

Outstanding morning show: CBS Sunday Morning, CBS

Outstanding informative talk show: Red Table Talk, Facebook Watch

Outstanding entertainment talk show: The Kelly Clarkson Show, syndicated

Outstanding entertainment news program: Entertainment Tonight, syndicated

Outstanding daytime non-fiction special: Creators for Change on Girls’ Education with
Michelle Obama, YouTube Originals

Outstanding game show host: Alex Trebek, Jeopardy!, syndicated

Outstanding informative talk show host: Larry King, Larry King Now, Ora TV

Outstanding entertainment talk show host: Kelly Clarkson, The Kelly Clarkson Show, syndicated

Outstanding music direction and composition for a daytime program: The Letter for the King, Brandon Campbell, composer, Netflix

Outstanding original song: “Unsaid Emily,” Julie and the Phantoms, Michelle Lewis & Dan Petty, composers & lyricists, Netflix

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Tyler, the Creator Apologizes to Selena Gomez for Past Tweets in New Song ‘Manifesto’

Tyler, the Creator released his new album Call Me If You Get Lost on Friday (June 25), and on one song, he calls himself out for his past behavior toward Selena Gomez.

On the track “Manifesto,” featuring his old Odd Future member Domo Genesis, Tyler confesses that he apologized to the “Kill Em With Kindness” pop star after he wrote a number of inappropriate and sexually explicit tweets about her in 2010 and 2011, around the time she was just 18 years old and dating Justin Bieber, who was good friends with Tyler.

“I was a teener, tweetin’ Selena crazy shit/ Didn’t wanna offend her, apologize when I seen her/ Back when I was tryna f— Bieber, Just-in,” he raps in the third verse.

In a 2013 radio interview with Power 106 Los Angeles, the 30-year-old rapper described the dynamic behind their relationship. “We don’t really get along. She don’t like me,” he said. “We don’t like each other ’cause [I’m] kicking it with Justin [Bieber], like that’s my homeboy. She always be mean muggin’ me. Like why are you hating on me?”

At press time, Gomez has not publicly responded to the new song.

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Here Are the Pop Stars Who’ve Inspired the Most Popular Baby Names

Outside of the Billboard charts, Drake has found a new ranking to come out on top: the top 10 most popular musical baby names.

Jewellery Box unveiled the artists and bands that the most babies in the U.S. are being named after, with the “Laugh Now Cry Later” rapper coming in at No. 1. According to the chart, more than 25,000 babies who were born between 2000 and 2019 share the same name as the Billboard Music Awards Artist of the Decade recipient (born Aubrey Drake Graham).

Coming in at No. 2, the Jonas Brothers are credited as the inspiration for 14,000-plus babies being named “Jonas.” Another former Disney star, Miley Cyrus, takes the third spot with almost 12,000 babies sharing her stage name. Also from the Disney camp, Demi Lovato is ranked the seventh-most popular name, with nearly 7,000 babies called Demi.

An eclectic group of rock stars — Prince, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Mick Jagger and Carlos Santana — make up five of the top 10 in the U.S., with the last names of the latter four serving as some of the most popular baby first names: Lennon, Hendrix, Jagger and Santana. Rihanna rounds out the tally at No. 10 with almost 6,000 babies sharing the singer’s stage name (she was born Robyn Rihanna Fenty).

See the full list, plus a breakdown of the top 10 most popular musical boys’ and girls’ names, here.

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A Calendar of Tours & Festivals Returning in 2021 (Updating)

Last year was a disaster for the touring industry. Since March 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic shut down live shows en masse around the world, promoters and music fans alike have been largely left waiting for concerts to return. Now, with vaccinations on the rise, new tour dates are getting put on the books and live events are poised to make a comeback.

“It’s a good day when you get to announce that LIVE is back,” Life Is Beautiful partner Justin Weniger said in March (his event is scheduled to return Sept. 17-19). “In the darkest days of 2020 when everything else stopped, the Life Is Beautiful community kept us moving forward. We’re eagerly awaiting a return to the festival grounds where we will reunite our community and celebrate the role of art and music in providing us hope when we need it the most.”

As the touring industry plots the return of concerts for 2021, Billboard has compiled a list of the major festivals and tours slated to take place later this year (organized by when they’re kicking off).

JUNE

Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam – June 4-6 in Panama City Beach, Fla.

Essence Fest – June 25-27 and July 2-4 in New Orleans

JULY

Chris Stapleton, All-American Road Show (partially rescheduled) – Starts July 17 in Chicago

Rolling Loud Miami – July 23-25 in Miami

Dave Matthews Band, North American Summer Tour (rescheduled) – Starts July 23 in Raleigh, N.C.

Green Day, Weezer & Fall Out Boy, The Hella Mega Tour (rescheduled) – Starts July 24 at Globe Life Field in Dallas

James Taylor & Jackson Browne, North American Tour (rescheduled) – Starts July 29 in Chicago

Lollapalooza – July 29-Aug. 1 in Chicago

AUGUST

Korn & Staind, North American Tour – Starts Aug. 5 at iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach, Fla. 

Marc Anthony, The Marc Anthony Tour – Starts Aug. 27 in San Antonio, Texas

SEPTEMBER

Maluma, Papi Juancho Tour – Starts Sept. 1 in Sacramento, Calif.

Bonnaroo – Sept. 2-4 in Manchester, Tenn.

Banda MS, Positivo Tour – Starts Sept. 3 in New York

Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam – Sept. 3-5 in Panama City Beach, Fla.

Pitchfork Music Festival – Sept. 10-12 in Chicago

iHeartRadio Music Festival – Sept. 17-18 in Las Vegas

Life Is Beautiful – Sept. 17-19 in Las Vegas

Riot Fest – Sept. 17-19 in Chicago

Eric Church, The Gather Again Tour – Starts Sept. 17 in Lexington, Ky.

Firefly Festival – Sept. 23-36 in Dover, Del.

Louder Than Life – Sept. 23-26 in Louisville, Ky.

Governors Ball – Sept. 24-26 in New York

Ohana Festival – Sept. 24-26 in Dana Point, Calif.

OCTOBER

Kane Brown, Blessed & Free Tour – Starts Oct. 1 in Sacramento, Calif.

Austin City Limits – Oct. 1-3 & Oct. 8-10 in Austin, Texas

Andrea Bocelli – Believe North American Tour – Starts Oct. 13  in Milwaukee, Wis.

Electric Daisy Carnival  – Oct. 22-24 in Las Vegas

Outside Lands – Oct. 29-31 in San Francisco

NOVEMBER

Evanescence and Halestorm, North American Tour – Starts Nov. 5 in Portland, Oregon 

Astroworld – Nov. 5-6 in Houston

Genesis, The Last Domino? Tour – Starts Nov. 15 in Chicago

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