Taylor Swift for Entertainment Weekly - May 2019
That slow drip, drip, drip you hear is the sound of Taylor Swift expertly releasing tiny morsels about her upcoming seventh album across a series of recent interviews and public appearances.
She eases the faucet on a bit more in this week's first-ever music issue of Entertainment Weekly -- on newsstands Friday (May 10) -- in a cover story where she reveals that TS7 will have more songs than any of her previous albums.
In her first sit-down magazine interview in three years, Swift tells writer Alex Suskind, "I try not to go into making an album with any expectation... I started to write so much that I knew immediately it would probably be bigger." And while she doesn't reveal how much bigger, Swift does give a preview of what styles fans can expect, saying, "There’s a lot of a lot on this album… I’m trying to convey an emotional spectrum. I definitely don’t wanna have too much of one thing…. You get some joyful songs and you get the bops, as they say," as well as some “really, really, really, really sad songs,” but “not enough to where you need to worry about me.”
The EW cover also seems to reveal some further Easter eggs in the form of the button-covered jean jacket Swift is wearing. Among the images she rocks are buttons of Mr. Rogers, the cast of Friends, sisters Arya and Sansa Stark from Game of Thrones, as well as buttons that read "Calm," "Track 5," "Awesome" and "Dixie Chicks," the latter serving as a sequel to the Easter egg in the "ME!" video in which Swift is seen standing in front of a painting of the country trio.
The story promises to reveal how Night King slayer Arya, and other pop culture icons, inspired the album, as well as how Swift's relationship with her Swifties helped her get out of the dark Reputation period. "It’s definitely the fans that made that tonal shift in the way I was feeling," she says in quotes provided by the magazine on Thursday (May 9).
"Songwriters need to communicate, and part of communicating correctly is when you put out a message that is understood the way you meant it. Reputation was interesting because I’d never before had an album that wasn’t fully understood until it was seen live. When it first came out everyone thought it was just going to be angry; upon listening to the whole thing they realized it’s actually about love and friendship, and finding out what your priorities are."
Taylor Swift Talks Bonding with Brendon Urie, How Fans Kept Her Afloat During Dark 'Reputation' Times:
In a video interview earlier this week with Capital Breakfast's Roman Kemp, Swift said there were three layers of Easter eggs in the candy-colored "ME!" video, explaining, "I try to do Easter eggs in, like, first round is stuff they can see that predicts what will happen in a couple months. There's also like second-tier Easter eggs which will be revealed upon the album. Then there's third-tier Easter eggs, which are the most deeply embedded Easter eggs which be shown on the tour."
#RHOA: Fans Are Over Kandi Burruss Playing The Victim Over the Phaedra Fiasco!
If Phaedra Parks returns to Real Housewives of Atlanta next season, Kandi Burruss says she will leave the popular Bravo reality show. After multiple reports claimed that the network was in talks with the Georgia attorney to come back for Season 12, Burruss admitted that she wasn’t ready to be on camera again with her former friend.
What Kandi probably didn’t see coming is RHOA fans being totally ok with her taking a break from holding her peach and let their feelings be known on Twitter.
During a recent sit-down with The Breakfast Club, the Grammy-winning songwriter denied the rumor that she called producers to prevent Parks’ return, but she did say she would take a break from the show if Parks re-joined the cast. Following Season 9, Bravo fired Parks from RHOA after she told Porsha Williams that Burruss was planning on drugging and sexually assaulting her.
“In real life… if somebody says to you or says about you that you tried to drug somebody and sexually assault them… and it comes back that person was lying on you, would you want to work with that person? That’s how I feel about it,” Burruss explained.
Fans again came to Parks defense, saying that fans knew that all of the drug drama wasn’t true and it was just a bunch of rumors and could never really hurt Burruss’ business ventures.
She went on to say that the thought of Parks returning to RHOA is “kind of scary” because she could do the same kind of things, but better. She would know not to tell anyone and “let the cat out of the bag.”
Burruss also told People Magazine that if Bravo wants to bring Parks back, that would be fine. But she won’t be a part of it.
RHOA is currently on hiatus, and producers are in the process of negotiating current cast members’ contracts for Season 12. It is not yet clear who will return, who will leave, or if fans can expect new faces.
Insiders claim that NeNe Leakes wants someone in the cast next season who is on her side, so she has lobbied for Parks’ return. During Season 11, Leakes turned most of her co-stars into her enemies, notably Williams and Cynthia Bailey.
A source says that Parks would fit right in with the current cast, and she would be Leakes’ only friend. However, she will have to bring the drama if she wants her peach back.
#Empire: Season 5 Finale: The Roughest Day'
BLOOP! Jamal Is Not The One In the Casket!
The season finale for Empire finally tells us who is in the casket and, surprise, the recently deceased is not who you might think. Jamal Lyon is stuck in the Seychelles and can’t get a flight back home due to inclement weather, so all the naysayers who thought the recently, legally-embattled Jussie Smollett might be in the casket were wrong. And, even if you didn’t think the dead person was Jamal, the writers still tricked viewers with this pretty major storyline sideswipe.
In “The Roughest Day,” the season 5 finale for Empire, the episode starts where the season began: with Lucious upset, crying and sorry over who is in the luminous white casket. The action kicks off and begins to paint a tale of two brothers, a lot of pain and a ton of misunderstandings. First up is Lucious (Terrence Howard) and Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) in the hospital emergency room, crying and screaming over Andre, whose heart stopped beating just moments ago. He is definitely coding. Cookie is upset about Lucious helping Andre (Trai Byers) in this drug-assisted suicide attempt but Lucious is upset too, by Cookie not understanding what he was trying to do.
“Don’t you touch me, you tried to kill my baby,” Cookie yells at Lucious.
But Lucious’ reply: “He asked me to,” is pitiful and painful.
The doctors are about to call it and declare Andre dead, but Lucious tells them to try one more time. The docs begrudgingly do it and lo and behold, they shock Andre's system and get a pulse. Andre is alive! The family gathers in the waiting room, Cookie’s sisters come and so do Andre’s brothers (minus Jamal, who texts Cookie to say that he is in the Seychelles waiting out a terrible storm.) Even Kingsley (A.Z. Kelzey) shows up to offer comfort and support. Candace and Carol try to talk to Cookie about Lucious, but she isn’t having it. One sister takes up for Lucious and the other one doesn’t.
Teri, meanwhile, is holding Andre’s hand and not leaving his side. She is there when he first wakes up. She asks him why he didn’t come to her. Andre’s first response is about the baby: “My mom says you’re pregnant.”
Out in the hallway, Hakeem is ice cold to Kingsley and both Giselle (Nicole Ari Parker) and Becky (Gabby Sidibe) decide to head back to work to once again save the Truth Tour and Empire from savagery and failure. Hakeem tells the bonus baby to leave, because Cookie won’t want to see him, so Kingsley leaves. But he runs into Lucious in the hallway and offers to take him out to get air. Lucious agrees because Cookie won’t allow Lucious into Andre’s room.
Over at Empire headquarters, Becky point blank tells Giselle that she got a job offer from Def Jam and if Empire doesn’t do better? She’ll bounce. But Giselle and Becky then come up with a plan to get her to stay and to also make more money. It involves giving fans video and more behind the scenes exclusive action to keep them glued to their devices.
Cutting over to Lucious and Kingsley walking down the street, coming upon an outdoor tent where the owner is selling old records. Some of those records are Lucious’ and Kingsley gives a sad little speech about being a little boy and scouring each song for any mention of him – the oldest baby boy. Lucious only responds by saying that he remembers writing a certain song after thinking about Andre’s big, fat kid heat.
Kingsley wants so badly to belong, but all he keeps getting are stories about the kids that did grow up with their father.
Back at the hospital, Teri and Andre have a discussion about the baby and about being honest about the future. She asks him if he is finally going to fight. And he says let’s be pragmatic, I’m not gonna make it. He apologizes because he didn’t know about the baby. She says to him that all they have to do is get him well enough to have a heart transplant. That’s it.
He pulls out a shiny play-ring, which Hakeem picked up for him in the hospital gift shop, and opens it. He proposes to Teri and wants to do the wedding right here, right now so the baby has his name. She makes him promise to agree to a big church wedding when he gets better. He does. Reluctantly. As the concert tour progresses outside of the hospital, inside the hospital the two get wed in a sad little bedside ceremony with Andre still hooked up to wires.
We will unpack more on Monday!
#NewMusic: From Mary J. Blige & Nas ‘Thriving’
Following the announcement of their joint tour, the legendary Mary J. Blige and Nas have come together to create a brand new single called “Thriving”.
Although the single is just now available for streaming, some may have heard it via the exclusive premiere on The Breakfast Club this a couple of weeks back.
LISTEN HERE
This follows the news from a few weeks ago that the pair will be heading out for the first time on a headlining tour together. “The Royalty Tour” is set to kick off in July and take the two artists on over 20 tour stops during the Summer months.
#HipHopNews: Logic Taps Will Smith, Eminem, & Gucci Mane For ‘Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind’
Logic’s fifth studio album Confessions of a Dangerous Mind drops in just hours.
Prior to its midnight release, the Maryland MC has revealed the star-studded tracklisting, which features a surprise collaboration with Will Smith. The former “Fresh Prince” joins Bobby Tarantino on a track called “Don’t Be Afraid to Be Different.”
The 16 tracks also include the Eminem-assisted “Homicide,” plus appearances from YBN Cordae (“Mama/Show Love”), G-Eazy (“COMMANDO”), Gucci Mane (“Icy”), Wiz Khalifa (“Still Ballin”), and his father (“BOBBY”), who is credited as “My Dad.”
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind follows September’s YSIV, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. In March, Logic released his Supermarket soundtrack, the companion to his New York Times-bestselling novel of the same name.
See the tracklisting below.
Stay Tuned for more Info!
#Power: Season Six to End Starz Series; Premiere Date Announced, Spin-Offs Possible
It looks like Power is coming to an end. Starz just announced the premiere date for the TV show’s sixth and final season.
The drama series stars Omari Hardwick as James “Ghost” St. Patrick, a nightclub owner and major drug distributor who has been struggling to go legit. The cast also includes Joseph Sikora, Naturi Naughton, Tommy Egan, and Lela Loren.
Althought season six will be the final season for Power, executive producer Courtney A. Kemp says there are plans for spin-offs:
We will follow some of your beloved ‘Power’ characters beyond the scope of the initial series. But we will play with your expectations of which characters, where, and the master timeline of it all, creating a ‘Power’ universe as unpredictable as the original.”
The sixth and final season of Power debuts on Starz on August 25th.
Read more info below: Santa Monica, Calif. – May 9, 2019 – Starz, a Lionsgate company (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF.B), today announced that the first chapter of its #1 hit series “Power,” created by Courtney A. Kemp, will close with The Final Betrayal. A heightened and unpredictable journey that raises the stakes yet again, Season 6 will play out over a super-sized, 15-episode season, premiering Sunday, August 25, 2019 on STARZ, the STARZ app and STARZ ON DEMAND.
“Season 6 brings us to the end of what we know is just the first chapter of the ’Power’ story. However, as one chapter comes to an end, another will begin,” said Carmi Zlotnik, President of Programming for Starz. “Courtney Kemp and 50 Cent have created a world rich with complex and dynamic characters and there are a number of stories we plan to tell as we continue to explore and expand the ‘Power’ universe.”
“We will follow some of your beloved ‘Power’ characters beyond the scope of the initial series,” said Courtney A. Kemp, “Power” Executive Producer. “But we will play with your expectations of which characters, where, and the master timeline of it all, creating a ‘Power’ universe as unpredictable as the original.”
Season 6 will also feature the directorial debut of Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson with episode 603 as well as the return of Emmy® award-winning director Anthony Hemingway (“The People v. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story,” “Underground”), who helmed the first two episodes of the series when it debuted in 2014, to take the reins for the finale.
“The last 5 seasons of ‘Power’ have been an incredible ride for me and all of our supportive fans. We are far from over and I am excited to bring you more from the ‘Power’ brand,” said Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson, “Power” Executive Producer. “I am proud that I was able to put a lasting stamp on this chapter with my directorial debut in an episode that features one of the wildest scenes ever on the show.”
Under Kemp’s leadership, the two-time NAACP Image Award-winning drama, which premiered on the premium cable network in 2014, garnered over 10 million multiplatform views in its fifth season and is the most-watched franchise for Starz. “Power” currently airs in over 120 countries around the world, including in Spain on Starz’ premium international streaming platform STARZPLAY.
Joining Omari Hardwick, Lela Loren, Naturi Naughton, Joseph Sikora, Rotimi, Alani “La La” Anthony, Jerry Ferrara, Shane Johnson, Michael Rainey Jr. and Larenz Tate as series regulars for its final season are the previously announced Evan Handler, Michael J. Ferguson, Monique Gabriela Curnen and Mike Dopud.
Season 6 Synopsis “Power” Season 6 picks up with James “Ghost” St. Patrick seeking vengeance. His former drug partner and brother in arms must pay for the ultimate betrayal. Rocked to his core by the perfidiousness and cruelties of those he once called his family, Ghost devotes himself to one notion: Success is the best revenge, with all intentions of getting both. Ghost aims to get even with Tommy, get the Queens Child Project built to consecrate Raina’s legacy, and finally achieve a thriving legitimate lifestyle with no criminal strings attached. Ghost’s need to wrest satisfaction and happiness from this world by any means necessary – is the most dangerous he’s ever faced. As the Feds grow closer to convicting him, Ghost must remain vigilant toward those wanting to take him down for his past criminal enterprises.
About “Power” “Power” is a visionary drama that straddles the glamorous Manhattan lifestyles of the rich and infamous and the underworld of the international drug trade. The cast is led by Omari Hardwick as James “Ghost” St. Patrick, a man trying to escape his role as a drug kingpin for a legitimized life in the elite of NYC; Joseph Sikora as his brother in arms in the drug business, Tommy Egan; Naturi Naughton plays Ghost’s fierce wife Tasha St. Patrick; and Lela Loren is his first love, Assistant U.S. Attorney Angela Valdes.
“Power” was created by Courtney A. Kemp, who serves as co-showrunner and executive producer alongside Gary Lennon. Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson executive produces the series through his production company G-Unit Film and Television, as does Mark Canton through his production company Atmosphere Entertainment MM. Randall Emmett, Shana Stein and Bart Wenrich also serve as executive producers.”
#OMG! Shots Fired at Atlanta Studio Where Offset Was Recording
An Atlanta studio where Offset was recording got sprayed with bullets Wednesday night in a drive-by shooting.
Law enforcement sources tell TMZ … cops responding to the shooting at the Crossover Entertainment Group studio Wednesday night were told by witnesses that Offset was there recording when the shots were fired into the building. Officers responded, but Offset was long gone by the time they arrived.
At least one witness felt the Migos rapper might have been the target of the shooting. So far, we’re told cops have not spoken to Offset, but they’ll likely reach out to him as they investigate.
According to Atlanta PD … shots were fired at the building a little after 9 PM by passengers in the passing car. The bullets damaged 3 vehicles, as well as the building’s exterior and at least one apartment window.
Cops received one report of someone getting shot in the leg, but officers were unable to locate a victim.
Our sources say the drive-by went down shortly after Offset went outside to chill for a few minutes. When the gunshots rang out, we’re told people inside the studio rushed into another room for cover until things calmed down.
We’re told there’s surveillance footage of the vehicle cruising down the street and firing shots before speeding away.
Dionne Warwick Says Claims That Her Sister Molested Whitney Houston Are Absolutely Untrue: It’s Something I Will Never Forgive
Back in August 2018, fans of the late Whitney Houston were absolutely shocked by claims that she was molested by her cousin Dee Dee when she was young. Dee Dee is the sister of legendary singer Dionne Warwick, who immediately shut down the allegations. Now, almost a year later, Warwick is taking a hard stance on those who accused her sister, saying she will “never forgive” them.
In a new interview, Dionne Warwick, 78, addressed the allegations that her sister Dee Dee molested her niece Whitney Houston when she was young. The claims were initially made public by Houston’s former assistant Marie Jones in the Houston documentary Whitney that was released last year. At the time, Warwick furiously shot down the allegations—and still feels the same way now
While promoting her new album She’s Back, Warwick got emotional discussing the molestation allegations against her sister, who passed away in 2008. She admits it still angers and saddens her that such damning allegations were aimed at her sister.
Warwick said this of the allegations:
“All I can say about Dee Dee is that she was a loving, caring, giving person. What was depicted of her is absolutely untrue and something I will never forgive.”
When the Whitney documentary was released, the singer’s mother, Cissy Houston, also supported Warwick, via statement, in slamming the accusations that Houston was molested by Dee Dee:
“We cannot reconcile the Public’s need to know about Whitney’s life as justification for invasion of her privacy or the charge against Dee Dee, a charge which neither Whitney nor Dee Dee is here to deny, refute or affirm. Neither I, Dionne, nor my son Michael who was very close to his sister, and in the film is VERY candid about their drug use, has ever heard these allegations; we have never heard anything remotely connected to the crimes charged against Dee Dee in the film.”
Dionne Warwick’s new album, She’s Back will be officially released on May 17th and she says the reason behind her return to music is simply the world’s current need for love. Warwick said,
“The world needs love. I hope they’re paying attention this time around. It’s time for that healing factor and it’s called love.”
What do you think of Dionne Warwick’s comments?
Cardi B Sued for $1 Million By Blogger Tasha K Who Claims She Received Threats Because of Her
Cardi B has been slapped with a $1 million lawsuit by a blogger who claims the rapper lied about her on social media, which caused her to receive threats from her rabid fans.
According to court documents obtained, celebrity blogger Latasha K has filed suit against Cardi in federal court. The suit comes two months after Cardi sued her for defamation.
Latasha says she runs a YouTube channel with 500k followers and runs various other successful social media accounts for her celebrity blog.
She admits publishing a video with another blogger in which they talked about Cardi B. She claims Cardi then reached out to her privately and asked her to remove the video.
Latasha claims she offered to do an interview with Cardi to discuss her issues but Cardi declined.
In response, she claims, “Cardi B began to publicly defame Ms. Kebe, referring to her as ‘this blogger lady, by stating that Ms. Kebe makes up fake stories; harasses all of Cardi B’s friends; constantly stalks Cardi B; falsely claims that she has legitimate sources giving her information about Cardi B; uses Cardi B’s name for ‘click bait’; and many other false accusations.”
Latasha K says she has received threats — including “gang-related threats” — as a result and has had to permanently relocate her residence. She also claims to be losing money from her business by losing subscribers and advertisers.
She says she is pregnant and suffering severe emotional distress, anxiety, panic, stress, insomnia, humiliation, and depression.
Latasha is seeking in excess of a million in damages.
Earlier this year, Cardi B sued bloggers Latasha K and Starmine Ebony Jones. She accused them of defaming by calling her a prostitute and claiming she had herpes.
Cardi took issue with various things Latasha K posted about her, including talking about her baby Kulture. Starmine made accusations that Cardi did drugs including molly and cocaine.
She sued them for defamation and sought unspecified damages and also wanted an injunction ordering the videos to be taken offline.
Michael B. Jordan Can't Stop Smiling After Dinner with Model Cindy Bruna
Michael B. Jordan and model Cindy Bruna were seen out together last night – and he had a huge smile on his face!
The 32-year-old actor and 24-year-old fashion model were seen leaving after a reported dinner at Carbone on Wednesday (May 8) in New York City.
It’s unclear if Cindy and Michael are just pals, or if there’s anything romantic going on between them. He has been liking some of her recent Instagram posts!
If you don’t know, Cindy has worked extensively in the modeling world. She’s walked for brands like Calvin Klein and Victoria’s Secret, and has modeled for Prada.
In addition to the photos of her with Michael B. Jordan, we’ve included some of her best red carpet and runway looks from over the years in this gallery as well!
Stepfather Of Missing Girl Has Reportedly Changed His Story About Her Disappearance
The stepfather of a missing 4-year-old girl changed his story multiple times while reporting the details of his stepdaughter’s abduction to Texas police.
Maleah Davis was last seen on Saturday, May 4. Her stepfather, Darion Vence, initially told Sugar Land police he was attacked by three Hispanic men while checking on his tire. Police report Vence showed up at Sugar Land Methodist Hospital on Saturday night, where an off-duty officer noticed fresh wounds on him. One of the men commented, “Maleah looks very nice, looks very sweet,” according to Vence’s account before the other man reportedly knocked him unconscious.
At the time of the alleged kidnapping, Vence was on his way to pick up the girl’s mother from Bush International Airport. Maleah and Vence’s 1-year-old son were in the car when Vence was left unconscious. Vence told police he regained consciousness late Saturday afternoon on the side of Highway 6 near First Colony Mall. The man said he found his son still there, but Maleah was gone. According to ABC 13, on Wednesday, the Sugar Land Police Department revealed Vence changed his original story.
“During the initial interview, the man’s story did change several times, and some of what he told us just didn’t add up,” said Doug Adolph, the spokesperson for Sugar Land police. SLPD also mentioned the family’s silver Nissan Altima, which was reported stolen after the attack on Vence, was seen driving around Sugar Land at 3 p.m. Saturday, just several hours before he told police that he regained consciousness. On Tuesday, Maleah’s biological father, Craig Davis, said he wants to speak to Vence directly to get answers.
“I’m not putting the blame on anybody,” Craig said. “I just need the questions that aren’t answered to be answered. There are so many unanswered questions. It’s not for the public to answer to them for me. It’s not for the police to answer them for me. It’s not for the news to answer them for me. It’s for Darion to answer for me.” Police have not charged Vence, and he is currently not being considered a suspect. Vence’s son is in the care of a relative while authorities search the area for the Maleah.
Prayers up for her and the family
AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES
‘FIRST TIMERS’
I think this is like the equivalent of throwing a kegger in high school when you’re parents go out of town for the first time.
#EGGPLANT NATION Meet Brent!
Meet Brent! Well to see more you can GO HERE TO SEE THE PICS! And remember they’re NSWF!
DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT OWN any images posted on this blog. All images are found online or submitted.
ENJOY!
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYBODY!!!!!!!!
EFREM
