Janelle Monáe Boards Uni Musical From Michel Gondry, Pharrell Williams

The new musical comedy Death Becomes Her is officially heading to Broadway!

King Crimson over a sample used in Kanye West’s ‘Power’.‘Power’ – which featured on the critically acclaimed fifth studio album ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted’ – samples King Crimson’s song ’21st Century Schizoid Man’ from their 1969 debut album ‘In the Court of the Crimson King’. UMG owns and operates the record label Def Jam Recording, a division which – in a joint venture with Roc-A-Fella – distributed the song.Allegedly, West sampled the track without license.

The peaches are back as The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 16 officially starts production. Bravo has confirmed the cast for the new season, which sees Shereé Whitfield exit the franchise.

Janelle Monáe has revealed that she felt “othered” early on in her career because she didn’t know how to make her music “translate”.The Kansas singer, actor and rapper is set to headline the first-ever I Made Rock ‘N’ Roll Festival, which will take place this Saturday (May 18) at the American Legion Mall in Indianapolis, Indiana. To promote the event, Monáe spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about her career and her musical fluidity.She said when she released the 2007 ‘Metropolis: The Chase Suite’ EP – the first instalment in her “science fiction odyssey” – she had a “smaller” audience that “got her,” but kept wondering how her music would “translate to everybody”.“I did go through a moment during that time where I felt super othered and like I had to cut off certain parts of me because people won’t understand it,” she said.

Samm-Art Williams, whose Tony-nominated 1979 play Home is being revived on Broadway this year and whose TV producing credits include Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Martin and Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper, died peacefully today in Burgaw, North Carolina. He was 78.

EXCLUSIVE: Universal Pictures has rounded out the cast of its coming-of-age musical teaming director Michel Gondry and producer Pharrell Williams with four additions: Tim Meadows (Dream Scenario), Jaboukie Young-White (C’mon C’mon), Jamilah Rosemond (Rustin) and Jayson Lee (61st Street).

Selena Kuznikov How do Hollywood creators forge massive universes for their characters? For Ronald D. Moore, executive producer of “For All Mankind” and “Outlander,” it all began with the question: What if the Russians landed on the moon first? From this starting point, “For All Mankind” was born. Moore and his team explored their alternate timeline, weaving cultural, societal, and political shifts with historical events, crafting a rich universe for the Apple+ TV series.

Sheffield DocFest, the U.K.’s premiere nonfiction film festival, today revealed the full lineup for its 31st edition running June 12-17. Among the highlights: the world premiere of Tilda Swinton’s feature directorial debut, The Hexagonal Hive and a Mouse in a Maze, co-directed by Bartek Dziadosz.

Strictly Come Dancing fans have hit back at those who criticised Layton Williams during his time in the competition as his major new role was revealed. The actor and West End star made it to the final of the BBC One dance contest last year.

Rudie Obias editor If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. With the return of “Bridgerton” to Netflix, a lot of attention is focused on the steamy romance series for season three. The first part of the season drops on Thursday, May 16, while the second part comes out on Thursday, June 13.

Janelle Monáe is picture perfection on the 2024 Met Gala red carpet!

Blake Lively and K-Pop star Rosé are among the celebs who stepped out to support Pharrell Williams at the launch of his new jewelry collection.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music In the wee hours of Thursday — 2:35 a.m, ET, to be precise — Universal Music Group and TikTok announced the settlement of their three-month standoff over royalties, AI policies and other issues. The battle was significantly disruptive to the industry but most of all to artists, thousands of whom suddenly found their music muted on the world’s most powerful platform for discovering and promoting music.

Songs from popular artists like Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo and Drake will be back on TikTok months after they were suddenly pulled from the platform. Major record label Universal Music Group (UMG) has signed a licensing deal with the social media platform that addresses concerns of pay and the use of A.I.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music The months-long standoff between Universal Music Group and TikTok over royalty payments and AI policies is finally over, at least for the time being, with the announcement that the two entities have struck a deal to bring the label’s music back on the platform. As part of the agreement, the companies stated that they will “deliver improved remuneration for UMG’s songwriters and artists, new promotional and engagement opportunities for their recordings and songs and industry-leading protections with respect to generative AI.” UMG’s music will return to the platform imminently, and the companies will collaborate on realizing “new monetization opportunities utilizing TikTok’s growing e-commerce capabilities and will work together on campaigns supporting UMG’s artists across genres and territories globally.” “This new chapter in our relationship with TikTok focuses on the value of music, the primacy of human artistry and the welfare of the creative community,” said Lucian Grainge, chairman and CEO of UMG.

Universal Music Group and TikTok have announced a new “multi-dimensional” licensing agreement that will return music from UMG’s family of artists, songwriters and labels to the short video platform.

Angelique Jackson The long-awaited live-action “Masters of the Universe” movie is one step closer to becoming a reality, with Amazon MGM Studios and Mattel Films dating the project for worldwide theatrical release on June 5, 2026. Travis Knight (“Kubo and the Two Strings,” “Bumblebee”) is on board to direct the film adaptation of the popular franchise, with Chris Butler writing the screenplay, following initial drafts written by David Callaham and Aaron and Adam Nee.

Co-op Live's first full show was cancelled minutes before it was due to start after part of an air conditioning unit fell from the gantry inside the venue prior to the start of the gig.

EXCLUSIVE: Following her breakout role as Shin Hati in the hit Star Wars series Ahsoka, Ivanna Sakhno has found her next big role. Sources tell Deadline she has landed a major part in M3GAN 2.0, a sequel to the hit film from Atomic Monster and Blumhouse in association with Divide/Conquer. She joins a cast that includes Allison Williams and Violet McGraw.

Katcy Stephan Missy Elliott is joining Universal Pictures’ untitled Pharrell Williams and Michel Gondry musical project. She joins Halle Bailey, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Oscar nominee Brian Tyree Henry and Oscar winner Da’Vine Joy Randolph in a coming-of-age musical set in Virginia Beach in the summer of 1977 and inspired by the Atlantis Apartments, located in Williams’ childhood neighborhood. Michel Gondry (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” “The Science of Sleep”) is set to direct the project based on a script by Martin Hynes (“Toy Story 4,” “The Magician’s Elephant”) and Steven Levenson (“Tick, Tick…Boom,” “Fosse/Verdon”).