H.E.R. Honors The Revolution During Powerful ‘Fight For You’ Performance At 2021 Oscars Pre-Show

At the Oscars pre-show on Sunday (April 25), H.E.R. performed “Fight For You” from the nominated film Judas and the Black Messiah.

Starting out behind a drum kit, the artist — wearing a sparking gold suit and her signature round sunglasses — then took to the front of the stage to sing the song. Here she was joined by a band of more than a dozen members, with a brass section, guitarists, back-up vocalists and more altogether creating the ’60s inspired-soul of the powerfully smoldering track.

The performance was intercut with statements from Black Panthers leader Fred Hampton, whose image was also projected on the floor of the stage.  Judas and the Black Messiah, which documents the 1969 police assassination of Hampton, is nominated for five awards tonight including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor for both Daniel Kaluuya and LaKeith Stanfield.

“I’m really excited for people to see it,” H.E.R. said of the performance when introducing it during the Oscars pre-show. “It’s very powerful and very important to me.

During the second half of the performance, a fleet of masked dancers — dressed, like the band, in a uniform of black leather — filled the stage, punctuating the performance with movement. The performance ended with these dancers raising their fists, while two banners proclaiming “power to the people” waved.

“We were listening to Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield, we listened to a lot of Sly and the Family Stone, some of my favorites,” H.E.R. told The Hollywood Reporter of the track in February. “I picked up the bass thinking about this theme of fighting for something. Because there’s so many things that Fred Hampton was fighting for and that we are all still fighting for.”

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DMX Remembered by Loved Ones at Homegoing Celebration

Family members, friends and clergy members dressed in white and red honored the life and faith of hip-hop icon DMX at his homegoing celebration Sunday (April 25) in New York.

Religious leaders and musicians prayed, sang and delivered moving tributes as members of DMX’s family sat in the first rows of the Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn. The private funeral service began 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday and was broadcast live on BET and the network’s YouTube channel.

The 50-year-old Grammy-nominated rapper and actor grew up just north of New York City in Yonkers and delivered iconic hip-hop songs such as “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem” and “Party Up (Up in Here).” His electrifying music focused on themes of religion, violence and redemption, and inspired scores of fans and performers worldwide.

DMX arrived on the rap scene around the same time as Jay-Z, Ja Rule and others who dominated the charts and emerged as platinum-selling acts. DMX fronted the Ruff Ryders collective, which had success on the charts and on radio with its Ryde or Die compilation albums.

Crowds of close family and friends also attended a two-hour memorial ceremony Saturday at the Barclays Center in New York, which featured a moving tribute from DMX’s 15 children.

Both ceremonies were closed to the public and restricted to close friends and family because of the coronavirus pandemic.

DMX, whose birth name was Earl Simmons, died April 9 after suffering what officials called a catastrophic cardiac arrest. He spent several days on life support after being rushed to a New York hospital from his home April 2.

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Here Are All the Winners From the 2021 Oscars

It’s time for the 93rd annual Academy Awards — even if the ceremony is a bit later than usual.

Who will be the big winner at the show?

See a full list of winners, updating live below:

Best Picture
The Father
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
Minari
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Director
Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round
David Fincher, Mank
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland – WINNER
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Anthony Hopkins, The Father
Gary Oldman, Mank
Steven Yeun, Minari

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Andra Day, The United States Vs. Billie Holiday
Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman
Frances McDormand, Nomadland
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy
Olivia Colman, The Father
Amanda Seyfried, Mank
Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari – WINNER

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7
Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah – WINNER
Leslie Odom, Jr., One Night in Miami…
Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
Lakeith Stanfield, Judas and the Black Messiah

Best Original Song
“Fight For You,” Judas and the Black Messiah — music by H.E.R. and Dernst Emile II, lyric by H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas — WINNER
“Hear My Voice,” The Trial of the Chicago 7 — music by Daniel Pemberton, lyric by Daniel Pemberton and Celeste Waite
“Husavik,” Eurovision Contest: The Story of Fire Saga — music and lyric by Savan Kotecha, Fat Max Gsus and Rickard Goransson
“Io Si (Seen),” The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti A Se) — music by Diane Warren, lyric by Diane Warren and Laura Pausini
“Speak Now,” One Night in Miami… — music and lyric by Leslie Odom, Jr. and Sam Ashworth

Best Original Score
Terence Blanchard, Da 5 Bloods
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Mank
Emile Mosseri, Minari
James Newton Howard, News of the World
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste, Soul – WINNER

Best Adapted Screenplay
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
The Father – WINNER
Nomadland
One Night in Miami…
The White Tiger

Best Original Screenplay
Judas and the Black Messiah
Minari
Promising Young Woman — WINNER
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Cinematography
Sean Bobbitt, Judas and the Black Messiah,
Erik Messerschmidt, Mank – WINNER
Dariusz Wolski, News of the World
Joshua James Richards, Nomadland
Phedon Papamichael, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Animated Short Film
Burrow
Genius Loci
If Anything Happens I Love You — WINNER
Opera
Yes-People

Best Live Action Short Film
Feeling Through
The Letter Room
The Present
Two Distant Strangers – WINNER
White Eye

Best Animated Feature Film
Onward
Over the Moon
A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Soul – WINNER
Wolfwalkers

Best Documentary Feature
Collective
Crip Camp
The Mole Agent
My Octopus Teacher – WINNER
Time

Best Documentary Short Subject
Colette – WINNER
A Concerto is a Conversation
Do Not Split
Hunger Ward
A Love Song for Latasha

Best International Feature Film
Another Round, Denmark — WINNER
Better Days, Hong Kong
Collective, Romania
The Man Who Sold His Skin, Tunisia
Quo Vadis, Aida?, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Best Achievement in Sound
Greyhound
Mank
News of the World
Soul
Sound of Metal – WINNER

Best Film Editing
Yorgos Lamprinos, The Father
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland
Frederic Thoraval, Promising Young Woman
Mikkel E.G. Nielsen, Sound of Metal – WINNER
Alan Baumgarten, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Visual Effects
Love and Monsters
The Midnight Sky
Mulan
The One and Only Ivan
Tenet – WINNER

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Emma
Hillbilly Elegy
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom — WINNER
Mank
Pinocchio

Best Production Design
The Father
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Mank – WINNER
News of the World
Tenet

Best Costume Design
Emma
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – WINNER
Mank
Mulan
Pinocchio

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Family & Friends Pay Tribute to DMX in ‘Celebration of Life’ New York Memorial Service

Outside of Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, a crowd of proud bikers all decked out in leather gear with large, unmistakably striking “R’s” stitched on the backs of their vests stretched as far as the human eye could see. Hundreds of motorcyclists rode together Saturday (April 24) from Yonkers to Brooklyn to honor the late DMX and his home team, the Ruff Ryders, ahead of X’s official memorial service.

This weekend (April 24-25), hip-hop icon DMX will be laid to rest, and it all began with an appropriately massive “Celebration of Life” memorial service at the Barclays Center to honor the late legend’s legacy.

The Yonkers-bred MC, born Earl Simmons, passed away on April 9 after experiencing a heart attack triggered by a drug overdose. He was 50.

DMX had a larger-than-life influence on his community. It came as no surprise that the entire perimeter of Barclays was blocked off and packed several hours prior to the event, only to let an enormous monster truck — carrying a bright red casket that was reportedly DMX’s — arrive on the scene.

Doors for the memorial opened at 2:00 p.m. ET, with only family, friends and media in attendance, though a live stream was available on DMX’s YouTube channel for supporters around the world to tune in. His funeral service will be held Sunday at 2:30 P.M. ET and will be broadcast live on BET and the network’s YouTube channel.

At 6:20 P.M., a bone-chilling silence finally swept the stadium, so quiet the sound of a single can of soda cracking open would echo across the enormous venue. More than 10 minutes later, the collective voice of a powerful choir seeped through the stadium speakers, and the stage opened up to reveal a red light-tinted center with DMX’s casket front and center, where it would remain for the rest of the night.

The stage then closed back up to allow a video to play: the infamous clip of DMX on a Sling Shot ride with his daughter. “Daddy’s here, daddy’s here,” DMX says reassuringly in the video, which created a somber tone as attendees reminisced about his well-known reputation as a father figure.

The choir returned, now more clear that it was Kanye West’s Sunday Service choir, entirely decked out in matching red hoodies. As they chanted their “keep moving” chorus, the memorial officially kicked into full swing with an undeniably uplifting spirit.

During their closing song, X’s family joined them on stage. His son Manny was given the mic and immediately began to sob. “If it wasn’t for my dad I wouldn’t be great at a lot of things. He was the best dad ever, and me and my brother showed our dedication and wrote a song about him.” He then recited the lyrics he wrote dedicated to his father, which included an account of the moment he found out his father passed.

Next to take the stage was Nas, who recalled a memorable moment between the two. “We did a great movie together, and he was just rising as a star but he knew his journey was about to start,” said the fellow rap veteran. “He looked at me, tears in his eyes because he knew about the journey he was about to embark on: become a hip-hop icon.” Then, a video of DMX saying a prayer started to play as it led into a live performance of Kanye West’s “Ultralight Beam.”

Afterwards, the Ruff Ryders were in the spotlight. Dee thanked Eve, The Lox and the rest of the Ryders family and led the audience into a DMX chant. A few of X’s fellow Ryders took turns to say a few words, each member delving into what the legendary DMX meant to them and the bond they shared:

Drag-On: “I don’t exist without this man. The air I breathe, he put it in my lungs.”

Jadakiss: “The world knew a dog but we know a different dog. It hurts anytime you lose a soldier, but this one was different because he was the main piece on the board. There’s no way I could ever repay him.”

Styles P: “If you’re from New York, you know what he means to us is indescribable. If it wasn’t for X, we wouldn’t be on. What made it special, that man did nothing but celebrate us. He accomplished something no one ever accomplished. And was in pain the whole way.”

Swizz Beatz: “Our gain is real because we have a real serious soldier to look down on us. We gotta learn how to celebrate each other while we’re here.”

As memorial-goers slowly left the stadium, the streets surrounded Barclays were still as jam-packed and lively as when the doors first opened earlier. Bikers were still circling the block, DMX’s timeless anthems were still blasting and people were still chanting his high-energy, gritty lyrics.

The collective sound of countless motorcycle engines still echoing off the Brooklyn buildings nearly six hours later represents the grip DMX has on his community, and will forever be immortalized by this impact. The legend can sleep in peace, as his legacy will be remembered and honored.

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Milva, Beloved Italian Singer, Dies at 81

Milva, one of Italy’s most popular singers in the ’60s and ’70s who was also beloved by many fans abroad, died Saturday (April 24) at her home in Milan. She was 81.

In announcing her death, Italy’s Culture Minister Dario Franceschini said Milva’s versatile voice “stirred deep emotions in entire generations.” No cause of death was given.

Milva also starred as a stage actress, with a repertoire heavily based on the works of German playwright Bertolt Brecht. She often worked with Milan theater director Giorgio Strehler, who directed her in one of Brecht’s signature works, The Threepenny Opera, a musical drama.

Born in 1939 as Maria Ilva Biolcati in Goro, a Po River delta town, she adopted the one-word stage name Milva. Along with Italian singers Ornella Vanoni and Mina, another performer who used a first name only, Milva was considered one of the greatest Italian popular female singers.

Milva sold some 80 million records, the LaPresse news agency said, and recorded 173 albums. She was nicknamed “Milva the Red,” for her voluminous red hair as well as “the Panther of Goro” for her vitality.

Germany, France and Italy all honored her with national awards. Milva also had a following of fans in Asia, particularly in South Korea. She appeared 15 times at the San Remo festival, the annual contest to promote Italian songs, joking after her 12th time that she never would win.

One of her hits was the song “Alexander Platz.” Composed by Italian songwriter Franco Battiato in 1982, it explored love in divided Berlin during Cold War times, with its name taken from the famous Berlin square Alexanderplatz.

Other top Italian songwriters whose works Milva sang included Luigi Tenco and Fabrizio De Andre.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Saturday praised Milva as a “cultured, sensitive and versatile interpreter, much appreciated abroad.” He extended his condolences to her family.

Milva, who announced her retirement in 2010 after more than a half-century of performing, lived in Milan with a daughter, Martina Corgnati. The singer’s former husband, Maurizio Corgnati, was a TV director who died in 1992.

Music critic Mario Luzzatto Fegiz wrote in Corriere della Sera that among Milva’s many talents was the uncanny ability to sing just about any kind of music in any language after listening to it just once.

“She worked by memory,” Luzzatto Fegiz recalled. “In German, she wasn’t even able to order breakfast.”

Milan’s Piccolo Theater Strehler said it would host a wake on Tuesday in its foyer and that Milva’s funeral to follow will be private. In a Facebook post, the theater paid tribute to her, saying she was an “indominable, sensitive, passionate woman, an artist all heart and voice.”

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