State Georgia Showbiz Latest News and Updates

The Sarajevo Film Festival has unveiled its official selection for this year’s edition, with Elene Naveriani’s Cannes Directors’ Fortnight title Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry among the titles playing in Competition.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Forty-nine films will compete for the Heart of Sarajevo awards at the 29th Sarajevo Film Festival, which runs in Bosnia and Herzegovina from Aug. 11 to 18. The Feature Film Competition will present 11 titles, with two world premieres, one international and five regional premieres. World premieres include “Europa” from Austrian-Iranian filmmaker Sudabeh Mortezai, whose credits include 2018 Venice Days entry “Joy,” the Best Film winner at London Film Festival, and “Macondo,” which competed for the Golden Bear at Berlin Film Festival in 2014. The other world premiere is “Medium,” from Greek director Christina Ioakeimidi, whose debut feature was “Harisma” in 2010.

Selome Hailu MTV is launching a new dating series titled “The Love Experiment” that aims to bring the choices and excitement of dating apps to life. The series, which premieres on Aug. 15 at 10 p.m., follows three single best friends who enter a hall of eligible men who are all ready for committed relationships. Inside the “dating utopia,” the women are in control, but they quickly realize that having too many ideal choices is harder than it seems. The stars of Season 1 and are Marcia, age 30; Paige, age 27; and Tamara, age 30. They are all from Atlanta, Ga. Mari Waugh aka Spicy Mari will help guide the women through “The Love Experiment” as a relationship expert. As the CEO and founder of the Spicy Life, Waugh works to encourage singles and couples to communicate and connect more effectively by incorporating passion and adventure in their interpersonal relationships.

Thania Garcia Though it started as a video-sharing app, TikTok has become an effective (and totally unpredictable) tool for musicians and record labels looking to shed some light on a new single. Now the app is putting its music industry skills to the test with the launch of “Elevate,” a new rising artist platform that will make the most of the app’s built-in music discovery tools to support fresh talent. The initiative launches today with musicians: Chinchilla, Sam Barber, Omar Courtz, Isabel La Rosa, Kaliii, and Lu Kala. TikTok will provide the selected creators resources including early access to new features, and will additionally receive support from TikTok’s official social handles. “Elevate’s” inaugural program will run through October.

SPOILER ALERT! This post contains details from the Season 20 premiere of ABC’s The Bachelorette.

The Daily Beast, during this time Rajaraman “observed a freewheeling, unchecked culture in which married, older and more senior NBC employees regularly targeted far younger women… for sexual harassment.”The assault, the suit says, occurred when Bass was a coordinating producer for NBC, handling late-night coverage of the games. He was also a producer on NBC’s “Today Show.” Rajaraman worked for Bass and, along with other staff, accompanied him to Atlanta for the Olympics.

Charity Lawson’s biggest supporters heading into her season of The Bachelorette are her loving family.

Morrissey has announced plans for a tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of his music career.The jaunt dubbed the ’40 Years Of Morrissey’ tour, will kick off in Mexico City on September 10 before calling at venues in Peru, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil.From there, the former Smiths frontman will head to North America, performing several shows in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Washington DC and New York.He will conclude his tour stateside with a four-night residency at New York City’s United Palace, which wraps up on October 25. You can view the full list of dates below.A pre-sale for Morrissey’s 40th anniversary tour will begin tomorrow, (June 22) at 10am local time before tickets will go on general sale on Friday (June 23).

Charity Lawson, 27 and a child and family therapist from Columbus, Georgia, found fame earlier in 2023 on Zach Shallcross'season of The Bachelor, where she finished in fourth place. Her vulnerability and kindness set her apart from the others, and she was asked to become the franchise's fourth-ever black Bachelorette for the 20th season which will premiere on ABC on Monday, June 26. In this exclusive with HELLO! — just in time for Juneteenth - she shares why she chose to put herself out there for the world, and the importance of bringing Black joy to network TV.

Kroy Biermann is facing more legal woes.According to new court docs obtained by ET from the Fulton County, Georgia Superior Court clerk's office, the former NFL player is being sued by BMW Financial Services for allegedly failing to make payments on his Rolls-Royce.Per the docs, BMW claims that Biermann defaulted on the terms of the contract signed at the time the car was leased by failing to make payments as agreed. BMW also alleges that Biermann has «failed and refused» to turn over the vehicle, which they say is still located at his Alpharetta, Georgia home.Included with the lawsuit is also a copy of Biermann's lease agreement as well as a transaction statement from May 16, 2023, which shows which payments have been made and missed.

RELEASESKiller Mike has released new single ‘Scientists & Engineers’, featuring André 3000, Future and Eryn Allen Kane. His new solo album ‘Michael’ is out this Friday.Anohni And The Johnsons have released new single ‘Sliver Of Ice’. “A friend of mine expressed to me in the final months of his life that the simplest sensations had begun to feel almost rapturous”, says Anon.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter The Peacock limited series adaptation of the Liane Moriarty novel “Apples Never Fall” has added six recurring guest stars, Variety has learned exclusively. Katrina Lenk (“Ozark,” “Little Voice”), Timm Sharp (“Enlightened,” “Blunt Talk”), Nate Mann (“Masters of the Air,” “Licorice Pizza”), Paula Andrea Placido (“Hacks,” “Shameless”), Pooja Shah (“L Word: Generation Q,” “Westworld”), and Quentin Plair (“Tiny Beautiful Things,” “Welcome to Chippendales”) have all joined the series. They will appear alongside previously announced cast members Annette Bening, Sam Neill, Jake Lacy, ALison Brie, Essie Randles, Conor Merrigan-Turner, Georgia Flood, Jeanine Serralles, and Dylan Thuraisingham.

Everyone knows that I am a sucker for small-city charm, so I decided to venture about an hour and a half outside of Atlanta to Athens, Georgia, home of rock bands R.E.M., Widespread Panic, and of course, the B-52’s. As soon as I drove into the college town, I knew I was in for a treat. I love exploring these destinations as they tend to offer tons of local restaurants and boutiques which ooze with character.Athens is a thriving college town located in the northeastern part of Georgia.

Charna Flam Amazon Studios and AMC Networks have partnered with Deaf Talent Media and Entertainment Consulting (DTMEC) on the creation of the Deaf Talent Creative Lab (DTCL). The new initiative will work to provide Deaf people of color with skills to further their success within the entertainment industry. The inaugural DTCL will host two simultaneous tracks for teenagers, age 13-19 years old, with another for adult industry professionals. The upcoming residential program will run from July 12 – 27, 2023 at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Ga. The DTCL will provide attendees with tools, guidance and assistance in developing creative proficiencies — including instruction from industry experts in screenwriting, acting, production classes, marketing, pitching and self-taping. In addition, attendees will receive networking and mentorship opportunities.

Charity Lawson is about to have her pick among 25 men as her journey to find love begins on “The Bachelorette.” Lawson — a fan-favorite from Zack Shallcross’ season of “The Bachelor” — will star as ABC’s leading lady for the next season of “The Bachelorette,” as the show hits its milestone 20th season on June 26. Among Lawson’s suitors are two men named Aaron, three named Caleb (one with a “K”), plus a Joe and a Joey. The contestants range from age 24 to 33 and include a firefighter, a pro wrestler, a “world record jumper,” a tennis pro, a yacht captain, a Harvard grad student, an attorney and a scientist.

The ladies of Aespa just made their Cannes Film Festival debut!

The Washington Post calls the investigation’s conclusion “a move that could affect how schools handle book challenges.” The Forsyth County, Georgia school district has “agreed to offer ‘supportive measures’ to students affected by the book removals and to administer a school climate survey,” according to a letter from the Dept. of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR).The extensive and detailed letter notes that the district weighed multiple methods to handle parents’ complaints about several books, and took steps, albeit insufficient, to attempt fairness.

The CIRCLE Women Doc Accelerator today announced the projects that will take part in the sixth edition of the prestigious training program for women-identifying nonfiction filmmakers. 

on Instagram. He was 87.Brown’s singular dominance in the NFL of the late 1950s and 1960s was unmatched.

Beyoncé has shared more details about her current ‘Renaissance’ world tour – see the full, exhaustive list below.The tour, behind last year’s lauded ‘Renaissance’ LP, began in Stockholm, Sweden last week (May 10), and will head to the UK and North America before the end of the year.Included in the new list, which has been published on Beyoncé’s official website, are names of the show’s dancers, producers, technicians, lighting directors, choreographers and more.Beyoncé herself is listed as the director, executive producer and creative director of the show.See the full list of credits here.At the opening show on the tour, the R&B icon presented fans with a stunning 36-song setlist, which covered her illustrious career and focused heavily on ‘Renaissance’.As well as including numerous fan favourites — namely ‘Love on Top’, ‘Crazy In Love’, ‘Formation’ and ‘Drunk In Love’ — the show in Stockholm also saw several live debuts for songs including ‘Cuff It’, ‘Break My Soul’ and ‘Summer Renaissance’.The singer also surprised fans by making the bathrooms onsite gender-neutral. This is despite the tour making stops in plenty of states which recently passed laws and policies that banned gender-affirming care for children under the age of 18.

Gone to pot. Kim Zolciak-Biermann filed a motion to have her estranged husband, Kroy Biermann, drug-tested amid their contentious divorce.

The second of two Eurovision Song Contest semi-finals took place on Thursday in Liverpool, northern England.

The second Eurovision Song Contest semi-finals will take place on Thursday night and will see 16 countries battle it out for a place in the grand final.

Beyoncé kicked off her long-awaited ‘Renaissance’ tour in Sweden last night (May 10) and surprised fans by making the bathrooms onsite gender-neutral.The show was held in Stockholm, and marked the first tour date on Beyoncé’s extensive ‘Renaissance’ tour — her first series of live performances since her “On the Run II Tour” with Jay-Z in 2018. It also marked her first solo tour since 2016.Fans attending last night’s show also noticed one thing different about the ‘Single Ladies’ set-up, she had made public bathrooms at the venue more inclusive.

Eurovision Song Contest has concluded, with 10 countries currently proceeding to the Grand Finals this Saturday (May 13).A grand total of 26 countries will participate in the finals, consisting of 10 finalists from semi-finals round 1, 10 finalists from semi-finals round 2, the “big 5” and Ukraine.The first 10 finalists from semi-finals round 1 has finally been revealed after a slew of performances and voting, with the following countries coming out on top: Norway, Serbia, Portugal, Croatia, Switzerland, Israel, Moldova, Sweden, Czechia and Finland.Watch Norway’s Alessandra perform ‘Queen of Kings’ below.This means that the countries eliminated from the contest following the first rounds of semi-finals are the Netherlands, Malta, Latvia, Ireland and Azerbaijan.Countries set to take part in the second round of semi-finals on Thursday (May 11) are: Denmark, Armenia, Romania, Estonia, Belgium, Cyprus, Iceland, Greece, Poland, Slovenia, Georgia, San Marino, Austria, Albania, Lithuania and Australia.Watch Sweden representative Loreen‘s performance of ‘Tattoo’ below.The “Big 5” countries guaranteed a spot in the finals without having to participate in semi-finals are France, Germany, Spain, the UK and Italy, as they contribute the most financially to the Eurovision Song Contest. Last year’s winners Ukraine also automatically qualify for the finals this year.Ireland’s elimination from this year’s contest marks the latest in a string of failed attempts to qualify, with the country not making eight of its 10 most recent attempts.

The first Eurovision Song Contest semi-final has taken place in Liverpool.

Peter Caranicas Deputy Editor Atlanta continues its steady expansion in content production with the launch of a new production hub, Electric Owl Studios, set to open on June 8. The new complex, described as “the greenest studio on earth,” Electric Owl Studios is a purpose-built film and television studio located in DeKalb County, just south of Decatur, Ga., co-founded by former Third Rail Studios executives Dan Rosenfelt and Michael Hahn. The 312,000-square-foot production campus says it’s the world’s first ground-up LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) gold-certified facility, making it “the greenest studio on earth.” It aims to minimize its environmental impact by taking measures to reduce its carbon footprint and generate clean energy by including LED lighting, 48 EV charging stations, solar panels, living walls, high-efficiency HVAC, carbon-negative concrete, food dehydrators for landscaping reuse, solar golf carts, water refill stations and more.

Bonnie Raitt will undergo surgery for an unspecified “medical situation,” her management has confirmed. The 73-year-old has rescheduled four upcoming shows, and canceled an additional performance .

It’s time for Tyrese Gibson to fork over a LOT of money in child support…