Jay-Z Pulls Out Of Woodstock 50th Anniversary Performance
NEW YORK (AP) — Jay-Z’s got 99 problems but Woodstock isn’t one: The rap king has pulled out of the 50th anniversary Woodstock festival just weeks before the troubled event is supposed to take place.
A person familiar with the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the person was not allowed to discuss the plans publicly, told The Associated Press on Friday that Jay-Z will no longer close the three-day festival scheduled for Aug. 16-18.
The news comes on the same day that John Fogerty, who performed at the original 1969 festival with Creedence Clearwater Revival, pulled out of the anniversary event.
Woodstock 50 has faced a series of setbacks in the last few months, including permit denials and the loss of a financial partner and a production company. The event doesn’t have a venue and tickets have yet to go on sale.
With Fogerty and rapper-actor Common by his side, Michael Lang — the original festival’s co-founder — announced in March that Jay-Z, Dead & Company, the Killers, Miley Cyrus, Imagine Dragons and Chance the Rapper would perform at Woodstock 50. The festivities were supposed to take place across three main stages at Watkins Glen International racetrack in Watkins Glen, New York, about 115 miles (185 kilometers) northwest of the original site, but the venue pulled out.
Bloomberg reported Thursday that the event will now take place at the Merriweather Post Pavilion, an outdoor amphitheater in Columbia, Maryland. A representative for Woodstock 50 told The Associated Press that she couldn’t confirm the report and said the organizers had no further comment.
Though he’s no longer performing at Woodstock 50, Fogerty will perform at Woodstock’s original site in Bethel, New York, in a smaller anniversary event not connected to Woodstock 50. The 74-year-old will hit the stage at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, which is holding its event during the same three-day weekend. Fogerty will close out the celebration on Aug. 18, while Ringo Starr will perform on Aug. 16 and Santana — also booked for the larger anniversary event — will perform on Aug. 17.
The Black Keys, originally scheduled to perform at Woodstock 50, announced in April that they had to cancel their performance due to a scheduling conflict.
Other artists scheduled for the troubled Woodstock 50 include Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters, David Crosby, Janelle Monae, Brandi Carlile, Country Joe McDonald, Halsey, the Lumineers and India.Arie.
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Drake Coming To Sirius XM Pandora Radio With New Station
SiriusXM announced today that platinum selling recording artist Drake will be coming to SiriusXM and Pandora listeners through an extensive new partnership that includes a dedicated station, curated music, and collaborations with creative talent.
SiriusXM and Pandora connect directly to over 100 million fans and this partnership will mark the first major artist collaboration between SiriusXM and Pandora since the companies merged. This is the largest agreement both brands have executed with a major recording artist to date. Drake holds the title of most-streamed artist of all time as well as the top-selling solo male artist across the US.
According to reports it’s unclear how this will affect Drake’s relationship with Apple Music. In July 2015, he signed a reported $19 million deal with the streaming service, which included exclusive projects, premieres, ads, visuals, and his OVO Sound Radio show. The last episode aired in October 2018.
Sirius XM and Pandora completed their merger in February 2019.
Jennifer Lopez to Star In, Produce True-Life Drug Lord Drama ‘The Godmother’
The singer-actress may make her directorial debut with the film, which STXfilms is producing as Terence Winter and Regina Corrado pen the script.
Jennifer Lopez and STXfilms are reteaming for The Godmother,a movie based on the true-life Colombian drug lord Griselda Blanco.
Lopez will star as Blanco and produce alongside Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, Benny Medina and Julie Yorn. It’s understood Lopez could make her directorial debut with The Godmother, though she has not yet committed to helming the project.
The screenplay was written by Regina Corrado and Terence Winter.
“I’ve been forever fascinated by the story of Griselda Blanco and jumped at the chance to play her onscreen. She is all the things we look for in storytelling and dynamic characters — notorious, ambitious, conniving, chilling,” Lopez said in a statement.
Winter, Alex Pettyfer, Alex Brown and Rick Yorn will executive produce The Godmother, which chronicles the notorious drug lord who outsmarted rivals as she rose from an impoverished childhood in Colombia to become a key figurehead in Miami’s drug trade wars.
STXfilms and Lopez earlier collaborated on the romantic comedy Second Act, which earned $72 million at the global box office, and the upcoming Hustlers, which opens Sept. 13 after a world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival. Lopez co-stars with Cardi B, Keke Palmer and Constance Wu.
Lopez previously starred on the big screen in The Boy Next Door, Monster-in-Law and The Wedding Planner,among other films.
On TV, she has produced and served as a judge on the dance competition show World of Dance.
Kate Vorhoff is overseeing The Godmother on behalf of STXfilms.
Lopez is repped by CAA and managed by The Medina Co. Winter and Corrado are repped by CAA.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
WATCH: New Trailer For ‘Zombieland 2: Double Tap’ Released
A decade after Zombieland became a hit film and a cult classic, the lead cast (Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Abigail Breslin, and Emma Stone) have reunited with director Ruben Fleischer (Venom) and the original writers Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick (Deadpool) for Zombieland 2: Double Tap. In the sequel, written by Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick and Dave Callaham, through comic mayhem that stretches from the White House and through the heartland, these four slayers must face off against the many new kinds of zombies that have evolved since the first movie, as well as some new human survivors. But most of all, they have to face the growing pains of their own snarky, makeshift family.
Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
Written by: Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick and Dave Callaham
Produced by: Gavin Polone
Executive Producers: Paul Wernick, Rhett Reese, Rebecca Rivo, Ruben Fleischer, David Bernad
Cast: Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, and Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Rosario Dawson, Zoey Deutch
Lilly Singh’s New NBC Late-Night Show Sets Its Premiere Date
NBC has set a premiere date and found a showrunner for its late-night series starring YouTube creator Lilly Singh.
A Little Late With Lilly Singh will debut Monday, Sept. 16, making Singh the only woman hosting a late-night show on the broadcast networks. Veteran producer John Irwin has come aboard as showrunner for the series, which is taking over the 1:35 a.m. spot Last Call With Carson Daly has occupied for the past 17 years.
The show will also have a gender-balanced writers’ room: The staff for the launch includes Sean O’Connor (The Late Late Show With James Corden, What Just Happened??!), Marina Cockenberg (The Tonight Show), Sergio Serna (The Late Late Show, Alternatino With Arturo Castro), Mona Mira, Jen Burton (Alternatino) and Jonathan Giles.
Singh and Irwin will executive produce, and Casey Spira, O’Connor and Sarah Weichel are co-exec producers along with the previously announced Polly Auritt of Singh’s Unicorn Island Productions. Ryan Polito will direct.
“I’m literally counting down the days until the premiere. It’s 53,” said Singh. “I’m thrilled to be collaborating with this all-star team of writers as we work to bring a new, authentic perspective to late night.”
Singh will be the only woman hosting a network late-night show when A Little Late debuts and one of just a few women or people of color fronting a late-night series anywhere on TV.
Irwin has run production company Irwin Entertainment for the past 15 years. He has executive produced a host of stand-up specials, including Adam Sandler’s recent Netflix special 100% Fresh and efforts from John Mulaney, Jim Jefferies, Norm Macdonald, Katherine Ryan and Nikki Glaser.
He also has a long-standing relationship with NBC, dating back to working on Late Night With Conan O’Brien in the mid-1990s. Irwin Entertainment has produced the network’s Red Nose Day specials — Singh starred in a filmed piece for the 2019 show — and New Year’s Eve With Carson Daly, along with the syndicated Robert Irvine Show and VH1 series Couples Therapy and Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew.
“I’ve been a huge fan of Lilly for many years, and her impact in media is truly remarkable,” said Irwin. “She brings a fresh perspective to the late-night space that is a breath of fresh air.”
Singh’s YouTube channel, ||Superwoman||, has more than 14.8 million subscribers as of publication time. A Little Late will combine pre-taped comedy bits with in-studio interviews; the show will have a digital-first strategy with content playing across a number of social platforms to engage a younger, more digitally focused audience in addition to its on-air viewers.
In announcing the show with Jimmy Fallon in March, Singh joked that it will be like her YouTube videos, but with “more than three staff members, and my sound guy won’t also be an extra and won’t also write the scripts.”
A Little Late is produced by Universal TV, Unicorn Island Productions and Irwin Entertainment.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Netflix Sets Revenge Film Produced By Jay-Z Titled ‘The Harder They Fall’
Jonathan Majors has lined up his next role after The Last Black Man in San Francisco.
Majors is set to star in Netflix film The Harder They Fall. He’ll play Nat Love, an outlaw who goes on a journey of revenge once he finds out the man who killed his parents 20 years ago is about to be released from prison. Love reunites his gang to track down the killer.
The film will be the directorial debut for Jeymes Samuel, who worked with Jay-Z on The Great Gatsby soundtrack under his pseudonym The Bullits. Samuel will keep his connection to Jay-Z, since the rapper will produce the film with Samuel alongside Lawrence Bender and James Lassiter.
If his performance in The Last Black Man in San Francisco is anything to go by, Majors’ turn in The Harder They Fall should be magnetic. S&A’s Trey Mangum called Majors “Oscar-worthy” in his review of The Last Man in San Francisco, writing that his performance as Montgomery is “multi-faceted” and “guaranteed to be one of the most interesting of the year.”
One of the busiest, most rising stars in Hollywood, Majors, will be seen next in Misha Green and Jordan Peele’s HBO series, Lovecraft Country. The cast includes Aunjanue Ellis, Wunmi Mosaku, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Courtney B. Vance and Michael Kenneth Williams. Among his several other projects, he has also wrapped filming for Spike Lee’s 2020 feature offering Da 5 Bloods with Chadwick Boseman and Delroy Lindo. That film will also be on Netflix.
Gabrielle Union, Dwyane Wade, Ciara, Russell Wilson To Turn Ex-NFL Player Vernon Turner’s Life Story Into The Film ‘Relentless’
Undrafted punt returner Vernon Turner might have come into the NFL through modest auspices, but his inspiring life story will head to the screen backed by a high wattage group of producers. Gabrielle Union & Dwyane Wade and Ciara & Russell Wilson are teaming up on a drama based on Turner’s self-published book The Next Level: A Game I Had To Play.
Union’s I’ll Have Another Productions and Wade’s 59th and Prairie Entertainment has teamed with Wilson and Ciara’s Why Not You Productions to develop the project, joining producing duo Brett Gursky and Josh Surkin from Magic Hour. Brad Gann (Invincible and Soul Surfer) wrote the feature script, entitled Relentless, after spending time with Turner exploring his life. Nicholas Katsapas will be executive producer.
This is way more than Vernon making it to the NFL against long odds that were with him when he was a high school QB who was 5’6″ and 100 pounds, and still threw for 4000 yards and made All State as a senior. The story is also about the sadness, embarrassment, heartbreak, guilt, regret, anger, fear, determination, triumph and relief that it took for the 5’8″ 185 lb. football player from Brooklyn to make it and save his family. In addition to his autobiography, Turner gained attention by writing a Letter To My Younger Self, which went viral on social media. In it, he divulged that when he was only 11, he come home to find his mother shooting heroin into her veins in the bathroom. If that wasn’t hard enough for a youth who watched his mom and white father fight over her drug abuse, she told him why she took heroin. As a young girl with her own dreams, she was subjected to a vicious sexual assault, and got pregnant…with him. The drugs were a way to temper the pain of that and she died early. It was up to Vernon to assume the role of adult for his siblings. Even the fact he got his story told by self-publishing his memoirs is in keeping with his never quit attitude.
Often told he had no chance to make it to the NFL after playing local college ball, he didn’t get drafted and got cut a few times as a walk on. He finally found his place in the sun as a kickoff and punt returner with the Rams, Lions, Buccaneers, and Panthers before playing in Europe until he retired in 1998. During his career, he led the Rams in kickoff and punt returns for 2 years before backing up Mel Gray on the Lions, becoming the Bucs’ to become its leading return specialist during the 1994 season and going into the Bucs history books by becoming the first player to ever return a kick or punt for a touchdown. He would get knocked down by being cut despite his success, but he got up every time.
“My most important mission is for this project to have the right group of individuals in place to help tell my story,” stated Turner. “Well, I struck ‘platinum’ with the additions of the talented actress/producer Gabrielle Union and her husband/future Hall of Fame NBA star Dwyane Wade, along with accomplished recording artist Ciara and her husband/NFL’s star quarterback Russell Wilson, joining my steadfast producers Brett Gursky, Josh Surkin, and Nicholas Katsapas from Magic Hour, and our unbelievably gifted writer Brad Gann. I truly feel we have the right ingredients to accomplish my mission, which is to help change and save lives. My journey is an extremely powerful tale that must be told and, at the end of the day, I want this film to have a global impact. I came into this world under horrific circumstances, but I want to leave it with a legacy where my parents above will look down with enormous pride- and give a wink of approval.”
Wade, Union, Wilson and Ciara said a joint statement: “After reading Vernon’s “Letter to my Younger Self,” we all learned so much more about this man than what was presented to us growing up. His story isn’t just one of an accomplished athlete. It’s a story of resilience, family and the will to survive by any means possible. We consider ourselves to be survivors of our own personal struggles who have also come out on the other side and couldn’t be more excited to tell this story together. Once we read Brad Gann’s script, we knew we had to get this made. This is truly a story of black excellence at its finest.”
Gann is repped by John Laviolette at Goodman, Schenkman & Brecheen; recently retired hoops star Wade, Union, Wilson and Ciara are all represented by CAA. Union’s also repped by Atlas Artists and Felker Toczek; Super Bowl Champion and six time Pro-Bowler Wilson and Grammy-winner Ciara are also represented by Untitled Entertainment’s Jason Weinberg and chief brand officer Jordan Dinenberg of BME/W2E. Wilson is additionally repped by sports agent and attorney Mark Rodgers.
Source: Deadline
Rapper A$AP Rocky Charged With Assault Over Fight In Sweden
STOCKHOLM (AP) — A Swedish prosecutor on Thursday charged rapper A$AP Rocky with assault over a fight in Stockholm last month, in a case that has drawn the attention of fellow recording artists as well as U.S. President Donald Trump.
Rocky, a platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated artist whose real name is Rakim Mayers, has been in custody since July 3 as authorities investigate a fight he was allegedly involved in on June 30 before appearing at a music festival.
Prosecutor Daniel Suneson said in a statement that he filed charges against the artist and two others “suspected of assault causing actual bodily harm, having come to the conclusion that the events in question constitute a crime and despite claims of self-defense and provocation.”
The rapper and the other two suspects, who were described as members of his entourage but not identified, will remain in custody until trial.
The prosecutor has recommended that the Stockholm District Court set aside three days for the trial, which defense lawyer Slobodan Jovicic said is expected to start on Tuesday. The charges can carry a maximum sentence of two years in prison.
Videos published on social media appear to show a person being violently thrown onto the ground by Rocky, 30. The rapper asserts that it was self-defense.
Suneson said that he concluded otherwise after studying videos available to investigators.
“It is worth noting that I have had access to a greater amount of material than that which has previously been available on the internet,” he said. “In addition to video material, the injured party’s statements have been supported by witness statements.”
Suneson added that there were initially two injured parties in the case, but the allegations concerning one of them were dropped due to “insufficient supporting evidence” and the charges relate to only one alleged victim. That person has not been identified.
A counter-allegation was made by the artist’s bodyguard against one of the alleged victims, but that case was closed earlier this week, the prosecutor said.
Defense lawyer Jovicic said “Rakim Mayers feels that he acted in self-defense, he is claiming that he is innocent, and in that perspective he of course is very sad.”
Sean “Diddy” Combs, Justin Bieber and Kris Jenner are some of the celebrities who have publicly expressed support for Rocky. The artist has collaborated with Kendrick Lamar, Cardi B, Drake and Selena Gomez.
On Saturday, Trump said he spoke with Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven about A$AP Rocky and “offered to personally vouch for his bail,” something that is not available under Swedish law. Urged on by the first lady and celebrities including Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West, the president had said in a Friday tweet that he would intervene to try to free Rocky.
Lofven’s press secretary, Toni Eriksson, later said that the two leaders had a “friendly and respectful” conversation in which Lofven “made certain to emphasize the complete independence of the Swedish judicial system, prosecutors and courts” and stressed that the government cannot and will not attempt to influence the legal proceedings.
“There’s been a lot of support from a lot of different people, and Rakim Mayers is of course very thankful for everybody that has reached out,” Jovicic said. He added that “it’s been a very hard time for him.”
Sweden’s ambassador to Washington, Karin Olofsdotter, told Swedish public broadcaster SVT that she has been forced to call off her summer holiday to deal with the rapper’s case. She has had meetings with members of the U.S. Congress, who she said struggled to understand that one can be detained in Sweden without having the opportunity to be released on bail.
Olofsdotter and Jovicic both rejected speculation that racist motives might have played a role in A$AP Rocky’s arrest.
“No, no, no. I think that we have not a racist society here,” Jovicic said. “I don’t see that angle at all.”
Meek Mill’s Conviction Thrown Out, Granted New Trial
A Pennsylvania appeals court on Wednesday overturned rapper Meek Mill’s conviction in a drug and gun case that has kept the rapper on probation for a decade and made him a celebrity crusader for criminal justice reform.
The unanimous three-judge panel said that new evidence that undermines the credibility of the officer who testified against the rapper at his trial made it likely he would be acquitted if the case were retried.
City prosecutors have backed the defense bid for a new trial and confirmed they do not trust the officer, who has since left the force and was the only prosecution witness at the 2008 nonjury trial. Still, District Attorney Larry Krasner said Wednesday his office needs time to decide whether to drop the case.
The 32-year-old performer, born Robert Rihmeek Williams, is now free of the court supervision he’s been under most of his adult life. Williams has said he had trouble notifying probation officers about his travels as required because of the erratic nature of the music industry. A little more than a year ago, he spent five months in prison over technical violations of his parole.
“The past 11 years have been mentally and emotionally challenging, but I’m ecstatic that justice prevailed,” Williams said in a statement. “Unfortunately, millions of people are dealing with similar issues in our country and don’t have the resources to fight back like I did. We need to continue supporting them.”
Reginald Graham, the officer who wrote the search warrant in Williams’ case and testified at his trial, left the Philadelphia Police department a few years ago after an internal probe found he had stolen money and then lied about it.
Graham testified at trial that Williams pointed a gun at him during his 2007 arrest outside his southwest Philadelphia home. Williams, who was 19 at the time, has denied pointing a gun at police.
A police colleague who took part in the arrest later said Graham lied about Williams brandishing a gun.
“Rather, (he) observed Williams attempt to discard his weapon,” President Judge Jack A. Panella wrote in Wednesday’s opinion, concluding that the new evidence was so strong “that a different verdict will likely result at a retrial.”
In arguments in the case last week, Assistant District Attorney Paul George said the office wouldn’t call Graham at a retrial in light of the questions about his credibility and due it its “legal, ethical and constitutional obligations.”
Graham was also investigated, but not charged, by the FBI in a separate corruption probe. The six city drug squad members indicted were all acquitted at a 2015 trial.
“I never lied, I never stole, and I never said I did,” Graham, now living in Florida, told Philadelphia Magazine for an article last year.
The Pennsylvania Superior Court also overturned the trial judge’s parole violation findings and, in a rare move, pulled her off the case because “she heard highly prejudicial testimony … and made credibility determinations in favor of a now discredited witness.”
Common Pleas Judge Genece Brinkley had kept Williams on probation for 10 years and sent him back to prison for several short stints for violating parole. He has been called back to court repeatedly over concerns about his travels and, in one instance, use of painkillers. Then-girlfriend Nicki Minaj testified for him at one such hearing in 2016.
The Philadelphia rapper-turned-entrepreneur is launching a new record label in a joint venture with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation.
The two performers celebrated the launch of Dream Chasers Records on Tuesday in New York City. Hours later, the court ruling came down.
Williams, in his statement, said he appreciated the support he has received from his family, his legal team, Krasner’s office and celebrity friends, including Philadelphia 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin.
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Meek Mill Launches New Record Label With Jay-Z’s Roc Nation
NEW YORK (AP) — Meek Mill is in a Jay-Z state of mind: The Philadelphia rapper-turned-entrepreneur is launching a new record label in a joint venture with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation.
The two hip-hop players celebrated the launch of Dream Chasers Records on Tuesday at the Roc Nation headquarters in New York City, signing contracts at a small press conference and popping champagne to celebrate the partnership.
“Of course I had offers to do a lot of business with other people, but the relationship we’ve built from (Roc Nation) believing in me through my whole career, through my ups and downs and the morals they showed to me and my team when it wasn’t in their best interest to have showed it — I feel comfortable going through this right here at home,” Mill said. “We’re ready to work. We’re just starting the beginning of a new chapter, a new page.”
Mill, 32, will lead Dream Chasers as president, overseeing the label and its staff.
Mill built a strong fan base and buzz in Philadelphia with a string of mixtapes, and reached the mainstream when he topped the charts with his major-label debut in 2012. He’s released two platinum albums and two gold records and reached the Top 25 of the pop charts with songs like “Going Bad” and “All Eyes on You.” He even beat out Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Dr. Dre to win top rap album at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards.
Jay-Z, hip-hop’s ultimate businessman, said he and Mill not only bonded musically, but in other areas.
“His integrity, his honesty, his sense of responsibility,” Jay-Z rattled on about Mill. “Everything that he’s done leading up to this point, it showed that he can carry that weight for the next generation of people. Everybody can sign some artists, make some money and brag about how hot they are for … (but) for us, we look at the big picture. For us, it’s way beyond signing hot artists and having a hot record.”
Jay-Z, Mill and others joined forces earlier this year to form a coalition that lobbies for changes to state probation and parole laws, called the Reform Alliance. Mill became a symbol for criminal justice reform activists after a judge in Pennsylvania sentenced him to two to four years in prison for minor violations of his probation conditions in a decade-old gun and drug possession case. He spent months in prison before a court ordered him released. On Wednesday, a Pennsylvania appeals court overturned Mill’s conviction and granted the rapper a new trial because of new evidence of alleged police corruption.
“We come from the same neighborhoods, been through the same things,” said Jay-Z, who grew up in the Marcy Projects complex in Brooklyn. “We’re some of the few that made it through … (and) that responsibility is not lost on us. We haven’t made it to this point just to be like, ‘Let’s just irresponsibly live our life.’ We had fun, don’t get me wrong. It’s fun too, but there’s a responsibility that we carry for the entire culture.”
Mill added: “Me coming out of prison this time, I signed up for a bigger responsibility. I always felt like I had a responsibility to lead the culture as much as I can. I always say Jay-Z and others that came before me was like a snowplow for people like myself. They made it easier to walk through the snowstorm. I want to continue to be a snowplow for the next generation coming behind me.”
For his new label, Mill said he hopes to sign hard-working artists looking to move the needle, “not a social media success for the weekend or for the month.”
The rapper will launch his Legendary Nights Tour on Aug. 28 with Future and will release a five-episode documentary series on Aug. 9 on Amazon Prime Video called “Free Meek,” which follows his fight for exoneration in his legal case and his work with the Reform Alliance.
Mill recently announced he’s now a co-owner of sports-apparel retailer Lids, and will lead the company’s creative strategy and release a limited-edition collection of hats.
Jay-Z said Mill will be a success in whatever he tries.
“I know he can make music. We’ve seen that. We’ve heard the music. I think he cannot only make music, he can make stars. Not only can he make stars, he can make film. He can do anything he wants,” he said.
“What we lacked for so long was opportunity,” Jay-Z continued. “We’ve never had this sort of power. We never had someone come before us and then come back and show us, ‘Yo, this is how it’s done. These are the mistakes that I made.’ We’ve never had it. It just hadn’t existed. Hip-hop is 40 years old (and) we’ve just now gotten to the point where we can really affect change and the music and the culture that we create. We’ve been giving it away for so long, which is understandable, we got to start somewhere. Got to clean the floors up before you own the building — but we don’t shine shoes anymore.”
