Willie Nelson Turns 90; Old Pal Don Mischer Pays Tribute To Iconic Singer-Songwriter — Guest Column

Editors note: Anthony McCarten has been nominated for two adapted screenplay Oscars, for The Theory of Everything and The Two Popes. Here he writes about AI, a big issue in the WGA talks with studios that broke down, leading to the current writers strike.

Meadow Walker‘s cameo in “Fast X” truly incorporates whateveryone knew and loved about Paul Walker by exuding humbleness, just one of the many redeeming qualities that exemplified her late father.

K.J. Yossman The Eurovision Song Contest paid tribute to John Lennon during the grand final on Saturday night with a cover of “Imagine.” After all this year’s contestants had completed their performances and the phone lines opened for the public vote, a number of former contestants from previous years delivered a tribute to some famous Liverpudlian musical acts, including Lennon, former Spice Girl Mel C, Atomic Kitten and Gerry and the Pacemakers.Imagine iconic Eurovision alumni taking to the stage together… Oh wait, you don't have to! #Eurovision pic.twitter.com/v6iFWYNfrV Italian singer and former Eurovision contestant Mahmood opened the musical interlude – nicknamed the Eurovision All Stars – with a performance of Lennon’s “Imagine.” He was followed by Israeli winner Netta, who came first in the contest in 2018, performing “You Spin Me Around” by 1980s band Dead or Alive. Next came Daði Freyr from Iceland with “Whole Again” by late 1990s pop band Atomic Kitten, which had the entire auditorium singing along.

Meadow Walker's cameo in truly incorporates whateveryone knew and loved about Paul Walker by exuding humbleness, just one of the many redeeming qualities that exemplified her late father.Speaking to ET's Nischelle Turner at the premiere in Rome, the 24-year-old model-turned-actress spoke about the significance of the cameo, how the  family truly has become her family and how the role came about. On Thursday, Meadow on shared a photo of herself captured on a set monitor in a glimpse of her cameo in the Louis Leterrier-directed film.Meadow was only a year old when her father starred in the first installment, but it's not until the penultimate installment (the franchise is ending with the 11th and final installment) that she makes her own appearance, albeit low-key, and that's by design, because that's how Paul would have wanted it.«I've always thought about honoring my dad [in a film] just because it's such a big part of his life and my life,» Meadow tells ET.

Willie Nelson is opening up about his extraordinary bond with his wife, Annie D’Angelo, in the latest issue of People.

I know that a lot of famous people — writers, directors, agents, lawyers, and powerbrokers — read Deadline every day.

Lesli Linka Glatter On Wednesday, the Directors Guild of America will begin negotiations with the major Hollywood Studios. We’re going to fight — no matter what it takes — for a strong contract that treats our members fairly and allows us to share in the success of an evolving entertainment industry. We know this will be a difficult challenge. But we will not yield from the premise that has sustained our industry for the last century: When artists succeed, everyone succeeds. That’s why this year’s negotiations are about more than reaching a fair agreement for the next three years — they’re about setting the course for the future of our industry.

Natalie Portman had Ryan Reynolds and Star Wars on her mind when she attended the premiere of her new documentary Angel City on Thursday (May 4) at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, Calif.

EXCLUSIVE: I Can’t Keep Quiet, a documentary about singer-songwriter and women’s right activist Milck, will make its world premiere on May 11 at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, Deadline can reveal.

Billy Joel has paid tribute to Gordon Lightfoot with a heartfelt cover of his song ‘If You Could Read My Mind’.The legendary Canadian folk singer-songwriter’s death was confirmed via his official Facebook page on May 2. “Gordon Lightfoot passed away this evening in a Toronto hospital at 7:30pm. More info to come,” the statement read.

Kate Bush, who re-emerged in the public eye after ’80s song “Running Up That Hill” appeared on Stranger Things, and Willie Nelson, who just turned 90 last weekend, are now in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced this year’s inductees for 2023.

Nominees who felt more like usual suspects — including Soundgarden, the White Stripes, Iron Maiden, Warren Zevon and the new-wave mash-up of Joy Division/New Order — were all passed over this year.Instead, it is indeed a new order with three women leading the list — Kate Bush, Sheryl Crow and Missy Elliott — who couldn’t be more different, ranging from alt-rock to hip-hop. And rounding out the 2023 inductees are George Michael, a gay pop superstar; Willie Nelson, a country music icon; and the Spinners, a black R&B vocal group.Michael’s induction, coming seven years after the “Faith” singer died at 53, is the latest posthumous honor coming after Whitney Houston, the Notorious B.I.G., Nina Simone and Tupac Shakur in recent years.It’s certainly great to see Nelson — who just turned 90 last Saturday — get his flowers while he can still smell them.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Willie Nelson just got an only slightly late 90th birthday present: an impending induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The country music legend was one of seven music figures announced Wednesday morning as having been voted into the hall, along with Kate Bush, Rage Against the Machine, Missy Elliott, Sheryl Crow, George Michael and the Spinners. There are six more inductees beyond that list, with the distinction of being selected by a select Hall of Fame committee to join the seven performers who were voted in via general balloting. These are singer Chaka Khan, instrumentalist-producer Al Kooper and lyricist Bernie Taupin, all in the “musical excellence” category; pioneering rock guitarist Link Wray and hip-hop originator DJ Kool Herc in the “musical influence” division; and “Soul Train” TV host Don Cornelius as the recipient of the annual Ahmet Ertegun Award.

. The late artist was perhaps best known for his 1970 hit, «If You Could Read My Mind.» Among his other chart-toppers were «Sundown,» «Carefree Highway,» «Rainy Day People,» and «The Wreck of Edmund Fitzgerald.» Through the span of his career, Lightfoot recorded 20 studio albums and wrote hundreds of songs.«I simply write the songs about where I am and where I'm from,» he once said, according to. «I take situations and write poems about them.»Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau was among those paying tribute to Lightfoot in the wake of his death, tweeting: «We have lost one of our greatest singer-songwriters. Gordon Lightfoot captured our country’s spirit in his music – and in doing so, he helped shape Canada’s soundscape.

Gordon Lightfoot passed away this evening in a Toronto hospital at 7:30 p.m. More info to come..Posted by Gordon Lightfoot on Monday, May 1, 2023Lightfoot’s death comes less than a month after he announced the cancellation of his 2023 United States and Canada tour.

Gordon Lightfoot, the honey-voiced Canadian singer-songwriter who had giant U.S. hits with “If You Could Read My Mind,” “Sundown” and “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” died today at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. He was 84.

Chris Morris Music ReporterSinger-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, the Canadian folk music laureate who crossed over to major pop fame in the U.S. during the ‘70s, died Monday evening at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto. He was 84 years old. Lightfoot’s death was confirmed by his longtime agent, Victoria Lord.Lightfoot rose to prominence in the mid-‘60s, penning such folk standards as “Early Morning Rain” (a major hit for the Canadian folk duo Ian and Sylvia Tyson), “For Loving Me” and “Ribbon of Darkness,” as well as the ambitious “Canadian Railroad Trilogy,” a sort of Northern equivalent to Mickey Newbury’s “American Trilogy.”While he was acclaimed at home and served as an inspiration for such younger Canada-bred performers as Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, success in America eluded him until he signed with Warner Bros.’ Reprise imprint (which released Young and Mitchell’s breakthrough recordings).

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Keith Richards was the surprise unannounced guest for night 2 of Willie Nelson’s 90th birthday tribute at the Hollywood Bowl — a surprise, at least, for anyone who hadn’t spotted his name listed in the fine print on the souvenir posters and T-shirts. The Stone rolled in with his signature line of recent decades: “It’s good to be here. It’s good to be anywhere.” Richards (79) and Nelson (you’d have to be really high not to know his age) then followed with two covers appropriate for gents of a certain maturity: “We Had It All” and “Live Forever.” The latter song probably wasn’t written by Billy Joe Shaver to be understood literally, but Sunday night, it sure felt that way. Nelson’s 90th birthday was such a momentous event in pop culture, it merited the two-night treatment it got at the Bowl, filmed by producer Blackbird Presents for theatrical release as well as home video. The actual birthday had come the night before, on Saturday, but as son Micah Nelson said at the beginning of Sunday’s show: “Welcome to the after-birth party.” The biggest difference from night 1, apart from many different guests and most different songs, was the increased presence of the birthday boy himself on stage, for the last 40 minutes of the three-hour-and-40-minute show. Besides Richards, Nelson also participated in collaborations with Sheryl Crow, Billy Strings, his producer Buddy Cannon, Lily Meola and (instrumentally) Booker T.

“Are there any more real cowboys?” Neil Young sang Saturday night at the Hollywood Bowl on a rare evening when he was neither the headliner nor, at age 77, even close to the oldest artist on the bill.