A gutter cleaner who held a university student captive in his flat and suffocated her with bedclothes until she passed out has been jailed for over a year.
29.11.2023 - 20:43 / variety.com
Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic What part of fast in “Fast Car” did anyone not understand? Country superstar Luke Combs’ cover of the 1988 Tracy Chapman classic proved to be as turbocharged as anything acoustically based in this world can be, with unexpected multi-format success: It was No. 1 at adult pop and country for two weeks each; a healthy No. 6 at Top 40 radio; No.
2 on the Hot 100; and No. 1 on Billboard’s overall Radio Songs chart for four weeks. At country radio, Combs was experiencing an embarrassment of riches, because before “Fast Car” caught on, Sony Music Nashville already had a different song, “Love You Anyway” — the lead single from his “Growin’ Old” album — on the fast track to become his 15th country airplay No.
1. But the Chapman cover was not destined to remain in the realm of interesting novelties. Top executives at sister label Columbia Records in New York saw his version of “Fast Car” come up in a list of songs being released to streaming on a new-music Friday, along with the rest of the album tracks, and quickly began to wonder if that could work on the pop side.
“We already had two tracks at radio at the exact same time, and we were having to pick and choose,” says Chris Kappy of Make Wake Artists, who co-manages Combs. Those two songs, in the first stage, were actually “Love You Anyway” and “Five Leaf Clover,” both of which the singer had offered fans in advance of the album, under the theory that country listeners are so passionate about Combs, a double-offering wouldn’t dilute any efforts. “‘Love You Anyway’ was a fan-selected single,” says Liz Cost, VP of marketing for Sony Music Nashville.
A gutter cleaner who held a university student captive in his flat and suffocated her with bedclothes until she passed out has been jailed for over a year.
Luke Combs has helped one of his fans after he unknowingly sued for $250,000 (£197,000) after she made and sold homemade merchandise.The country singer said that he was not aware that fan Nicol Harness had been sued for selling 18 drinks tumblers with his face on them. Harness had said that she only learned of the legal action after the ruling, which came days after she was in hospital (per BBC).Taking to his official Instagram page, Combs shared a video explaining that he was unaware of the situation.
Swiss writer-director Carmen Jaquier’s Swiss-language debut feature Thunder, is about adolescent sexual awakening set at the cusp of the 19th and 20th centuries. It’s the story of Elisabeth (Lilith Grasmug), a teenage novitiate who, as she’s about to take her vows, is told of her elder sister Innocente’s sudden death.
The Killers have announced a handful of extra dates and their opening support act for their ‘Rebel Diamonds‘ greatest hits UK and Ireland arena tour.Ahead of the release of their ‘best of’ album, ‘Rebel Diamonds’, The Killers have added four extra dates in Dublin, Manchester, Glasgow and London to their celebratory 2024 tour due to exceptional demand during early ticket pre-sales.Brandon Flowers and Co. have also shared that the Glaswegian band Travis will be serving as opening support for the tour.The ‘Rebel Diamonds’ tour will mark the first time The Killers play arena shows in the UK since 2017’s ‘Wonderful Wonderful’ tour, and will see their return after the band’s most recent stadium tour, which saw them play to 400,000 fans at sold-out shows, and their acclaimed headline appearances at Reading & Leeds 2022.Tickets for the tour are set to go on sale tomorrow, December 8 at 9:30am local time.
Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic It’s hard to quite think of someone who was as big a veritable child star as Brenda Lee was in the late ’50s and early ’60s a “late bloomer.” Nor can “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” really be considered an underdog song, after its accrual of quintuple-platinum sales over the decades. And yet it’s spent the last several years peaking at No. 2 each December, after spending most of its lifetime not annually charting at all.
Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Country music hasn’t had a huge presence in the mainstream top 10 since Florida Georgia Line provided a couple of big crossover blips in 2014 and 2017 with “Cruise” and “Meant to Be.” But that changed in triplicate in 2023 with three Nashville exports— the well-established Morgan Wallen and Luke Combs, plus a blazing-hot newcomer, Zimmerman. His first three singles all hit No.
Kate Middleton and King Charles have been dragged into the royal racism row as the father and daughter-in-law duo were named as those accused of making alleged offensive comments about the colour of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's son's skin before he was born.
Good Morning Britain viewers were not happy and criticised ITV for debating the shocking revelations from Omid Scobie's new book, Endgame.The show's hosts, Susanna Reid and Richard Madeley discussed the explosive claims from the book about the Royal Family. The book was recently pulled from shelves in Holland as it seemed to reveal the identity of a "royal racist". In 2021, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex accused an unnamed senior Royal of expressing concern over their child's skin colour in a tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Strictly Come Dancing fans have said they're 'so bored' as they shared a mixed reaction to the song and dance choices for Musicals week. The razzle-dazzle of the stage will be coming to the Elstree studio ballroom when the BBC One dance contest returns on Saturday (December 2).
Matthew Perry, the star of Friends, sadly passed away at 54 on October 28, 2023, in his Los Angeles home. He had a successful career despite personal struggles, with a decade on Friends and other big projects like 17 Again and Fallout: New Vegas contributing to his wealth.The actor, who played Chandler Bing, had an estimated net worth of $102million (£84million), making him the third richest 'Friends' cast member after Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox.
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Wellington Paranormal,” the series spinoff from 2014 breakout hit film “What We Do In the Shadows,” is launching an audio companion piece. It is produced by Frank Podcasts, a new New Zealand-based podcast network, headed by Mike Minogue and Tim Batt. The podcast will feature actors, writers, directors and more, delving into the making of the Jemaine Clement produced and Taika Waititi executive produced TV series, “Wellington Paranormal.” The show is hosted by Minogue (who played Officer Minogue in the series) and Karen O’Leary (Officer O’Leary), with Maaka Pohatu (Sarge) and Tom Sainsbury (Officer Parker) as recurring guests.
Following last night's anncounment that Girls Aloud would be reuniting for a 2024 UK and Ireland tour, the band have revealed more details about what it may entail. The most successful girl group of the noughties will be heading out on tour next May, starting off in Dublin before going across the UK, including two nights in Manchester.
The Kills have announced details of a tour across the UK and Europe, set to kick off in 2024. Check out ticket details below.The newly shared run of live shows will see the duo – formed of Alison Mosshart and Jamie Hince – hit the road in celebration of their latest album ‘God Games’.
Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Public Enemy, R.E.M, George Clinton, Steely Dan, Bryan Adams, Tracy Chapman, Timbaland are among the nominees for the 2024 class of the Songwriters Hall of Fame. The full list of nominees appears below.
sat down for a discussion with current emcee Stephen Colbert at Manhattan’s Ed Sullivan Theater on Monday.Letterman’s appearance as a guest on Colbert’s show was his first since he departed the “Late Show” in 2015 after a 22-year run. The two men just spent the segment happily chatting, with Colbert, 59, asking if Letterman longs to be back on his “Late Show” stage.“I miss everything,” the comedian confessed.“Mostly it’s fun. Very few things in life provide one the opportunity — and I can’t speak for you or to you on this topic — But for me, if you muck one up, 24 hours later you get to try again,” he added.
Paramount+ Greenlights ‘The Road Trip‘ Based On ‘The Flatshare‘ Scribe’s Novel
Lacey Chabert is one of Hallmark Channel‘s most-booked stars!
Strictly Come Dancing is returning to Blackpool on Saturday, 18 November, and there's no doubt this year's contestants are excited to perform at the iconic Tower Ballroom. The hit BBC One show is returning to Blackpool for the annual live show from the seaside town, with the remaining Strictly stars given the opportunity to perform in the legendary Ballroom.
Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic In a time when country music is suddenly flusher with credible newcomers than it has been in a lot of years, Megan Moroney is one of the freshest of the fresh — with a clever debut single, “Tennessee Orange,” that stands as one of the best No. 1 singles the format has wrought recently, from an album, “Lucky,” that bears no skips among its 16 deluxe-edition tracks.
Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Bob Dylan rarely speaks in his concerts beyond a “thank you,” so when he says even something trivial from the stage, people listen — and when he suddenly breaks with form to defend a controversial figure, they lean in even more. At a show Thursday night at the Beacon Theatre in New York City, he defended Rolling Stone magazine founder Jann Wenner, who in September was removed from the board of directors of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation — which he also co-founded — after remarks in a New York Times interview that were perceived as sexist and racist.