Gayle King Interviews R. Kelly — My Thoughts

If I learned anything from Robert Kelly’s interview with Gayle King, it’s that the art of the interview has been lost. Gone are the Barbara Walters days of truncated, tricky questions that illicit admissions, no matter how prepared and media trained the subject. Many are complimenting King’s composure during Kelly’s volcanic eruption, as she gently and effectively interrupted his useless rant and encouraged him to take his seat. While I also think King’s composure deserves praise, I question whether an interview can be deemed effective when the phrasing of a question causes such a rant in the first place.

An interview is not about accountability, despite the desires of social media. It’s about information gathering. And if you aren’t gathering any information and are instead just witnessing his temperament, we’ve gotten nowhere. If it were me, I’d say, “How would you describe your relationship with Jocelyn Savage?”

Though many have also suggested that R. Kelly does not deserve a platform, I’m fine with it. We’ve interviewed serial killers, pedophiles, etc., and I think those interviews are important — as information gathering. I draw exception when there is a pending criminal case that could influence the potential jury pool. Let investigators do their job before you put this man on television. In fact, interview R. Kelly from behind bars instead.

Jordyn Woods, Red Table Talk, and Those Reprehensible NDAs

@JordyWoods

It’s now widely known that Kylie Jenner’s best friend, Jordyn Woods, hooked up with Khloe Kardashian’s boyfriend/baby daddy, Tristan Thompson, at a house party. Woods has since been dragged on social media, and she will appear on Red Table Talk to share her side of the story. The truth-table series was launched by Jada Pinkett Smith, and it is the perfect platform for Woods. According to media sources, the Kardashians are livid with Woods — not only for the hookup, but for the decision to publicly discuss the story without their permission. More specifically, Woods signed a non-disclosure agreement, and this might violate it.

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The Oscars — Highlights From the Night

The 91st Academy Awards seemed to be in dire straights with the Kevin Hart debacle, but the host-less ceremony went off without a hitch and even saw a slight uptick in ratings. Does that mean we should forgo a funnyman/woman next year? I’m not sure, but it certainly had to happen this year. No comedian wanted to go near the ceremony after Kevin Hart stepped down, and that was likely the right decision. 

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Justin Bieber, That Vogue Interview, and His Depression

Photographed by Annie Leibovitz, Vogue, March 2019

I like Justin Bieber. In fact, I might be one of the only people to defend his many random rants. But the news that he’s receiving treatment for depression coupled with the insistence that it “has nothing to do” with his wife Hailey is not surprising. The new couple recently did an interview with Vogue Magazine, and while others thought it a cute inside look at their romance, I saw their mutual misery as absolutely alarming.

Read the most telling quotes below:
Hailey
“The thing is, marriage is very hard. That is the sentence you should lead with. It’s really effing hard.”
Justin

“I’ve made some bad decisions personally, and in relationships. Those mistakes have affected my confidence in my judgment. It’s been difficult for me even to trust Hailey. We’ve been working through stuff. And it’s great, right?”

Hailey (of a past betrayal)
“Negative things happened that we still need to talk about and work through.”
Justin“Fighting is good. Doesn’t the Bible talk about righteous anger? We don’t want to lose each other. We don’t want to say the wrong thing, and so we’ve been struggling with not expressing our emotions, which has been driving me absolutely crazy because I just need to express myself, and it’s been really difficult to get her to say what she feels.”

Hailey (in reference to the Belieber backlash about their marriage)

“I prayed to feel peace about the decision [to marry], and that’s where I landed. I love him very much. I have loved him for a long time.”

Justin (on being homebodies)

“She’s trying to be this grown-up. I think we can be married and still have fun and enjoy our adolescence. That’s something we’re talking about.”

I realize that I’ve plucked out the most negative parts of the interview, so if you’d like to read it in full and judge for yourself, head on over to Vogue Magazine. But be aware that I generously only pulled the actual quotes, because the interviewers observations and asides are even worse.

Did Katy Perry Show Off During that Dolly Parton Tribute?

Katy Perry, Kacey Musgraves, Dolly Parton, The Grammys
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

If you have any experience in the entertainment industry, then you know how deeply difficult it is for an artist to share the spotlight. While some are generous and humble, others are not and even if that spotlight is occupied by an absolute legend — it’s no matter. Such was the case for Katy Perry, who simply could not pare back her performance during 10-minute all-star tribute to Dolly Parton at The Grammy’s.

Instead of highlighting Dolly alongside the Kacey Musgraves (who I’m told has a stellar reputation for kindness), she railroaded Musgraves with pitchy trills and cartoonish facial expressions — everything Dolly Parton IS NOT. I laughed when Perry held out her hands to introduce one of greatest singer/songwriters of all time, as if this was somehow a generous move.

It’s absolutely unclear why Katy Perry was chosen in the first place. Unlike the other artists, including Dolly’s Goddaughter Miley Cyrus (who had a killer night), she has zero connection to country music. She previously sang with Dolly at the 2016 ACMs, but that performance had far more deference to the superstar and was seemingly before the American Idol judge began to believe her own hype. To be fair, it’s possible Perry just had a bad night. But there’s a difference between being pitchy and a show off.

Before closing this post, I’d like to take a moment of silence to think about the greatness that is Dolly Parton. Even her newest material, most recently from the Netflix original film, Dumplin’, is incredible. And if that’s not enough, she is never, under any circumstances, above a good shout out. Watch the performance by clicking HERE, and notice how she always takes the time to introduce her band and her fellow singers.

Jennifer Lopez Inappropriately Brings “JLO” to Motown at The Grammys

Jennifer Lopez and Smokey Robinson at The Grammys
Rob Latour/REX/Shutterstock

Jennifer Lopez’s presence alone just about guarantees a solid, show-stopping performance at any show, but that doesn’t make it an appropriate choice, especially when Motown is involved. She’s received hefty criticism as the choice performer for the Grammys’ Motown tribute, in which she sang “My Girl,” alongside Smokey Robinson, “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone” with Alicia Keys, “Another Star” with Ne-Yo, “Please Mr. Postman”, and “Money (That’s What I Want).”

Berry Gordy, who founded Motown Records in 1959 sat in the audience and according to Lopez, was “thrilled” with her involvement. During his tenure, Gordy signed some serious titans, including The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Gladys Knight & the Pips, the Commodores, the Velvelettes, Martha and the Vandellas, Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5. The twitter-sphere has rightfully suggested that Gladys Knight or Stevie Wonder would have been a far more suitable choice. Lopez furthered that, “Any type of music can inspire any type of artist. You can’t tell people what to love. You can’t tell people what they can and can’t do, what they should sing or not sing. You gotta do what’s in your heart.” Smokey Robinson also came to her defense, saying, “Anyone who is upset is stupid.”

First, I resent being called stupid for making an extremely obvious-yet-important point. To quote one twitter user, “No doubt Latinos would be upset if they had a black soul singer doing a tribute to Latin music.” Additionally, while Motown lives in everyone’s heart, I find it distasteful to forgo using a black artist, especially during Black History Month. Have we learned NOTHING? Remember Emma Stone’s recent “I’m Sorry” exclamation about playing an Asian-American role in ‘Aloha?” Or how about Scarlett Johansson whitewashing ‘Ghost in a Shell?’ To say it’s simply about the art, is to demean the contribution of African American artists who represent the history of Motown. It’s whitewashing, and it’s extremely important to point out — NOT stupid. Finally, if you’re going to do a Motown tribute — at the very least — change up your standard “JLO.” I love a good leotard, and she can certainly rock it, but nothing about her performance suggested Motown. Nothing except the songs itself.

Maroon 5 at Super Bowl LIII – Review

Dale Zanine, USA Today Sports

If you had no knowledge of Maroon 5 and tuned into the Super Bowl halftime show last night, you’d have thought Adam Levine was a solo act. That’s a shame, especially since I’ve seen Maroon 5 live, and the only good part of the show is lead guitarist James Valentine. Mr. Valentine is the extremely well-dressed, long-haired gentleman who can play. He’s often lost in the shadows of Levine, who is less than generous to his band. When I saw them perform live at The Forum, his band was barely visible behind the ridiculous light show and stage placement. If you’re curious what it looks like when a lead singer is generous to his fellow musicians, go see Bruce Springsteen live. I realize that no one compares to The Boss, but given his performing prowess, one might expect that he too would steal the spotlight at the expense of his band — and he does the opposite.

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Tabloid Gossip — Your Week of News

DF-11915_R2 – L-R: Gwilym Lee (Brian May), Rami Malek (Freddie Mercury), and Joe Mazzello (John Deacon) star in Twentieth Century Fox’s BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY. Photo Credit: Courtesy Twentieth Century Fox.

Pete Davidson is dating my girlfriend. People

Lily Aldridge and Caleb Followill welcomed their second child. Us Weekly

NeNe Leakes just came for Lisa Vanderpump. Too Fab

Aly Raisman discussed her ex-boyfriend, The Bachelor’s Colton Underwood. ET Online

Natalie Maines’ estranged husband wants a lot of money in alimony. Dlisted

Birdman and Toni Braxton are back on. The Blast

Cardi B and Offset were spotted canoodling. Hollywood Life

Roger Matthews responded to JWOWW’s abuse allegations. New York Post

Mo’Nique allegedly threatened Steve Harvey during an appearance on his show. The Blast

Gisele’s sobriety ended her relationship with Leonardo DiCaprio. Stuff

Halsey and Yungblud are heating up. TMZ

Brangelina called a brief truce. Socialite Life

Rami Malek said working with Bryan Singer on Bohemian Rhapsody was “not pleasant.” Vulture

Paris Jackson opened up about her mental health. Just Jared

Liam Payne and Naomi Campbell are enjoying each other’s company. Radar

Mo’Nique Addresses Whoopi Goldberg “Shade” — Still Doesn’t Get It

Photo by Aaron Poole/E! Entertainment

There are just some people who don’t get it, and Mo’Nique is one of them. Though I can’t speak to her personal life struggles, I can speak to the expectation that actors engage in a limited amount of publicity to promote their project, which is in their contract. When they choose to forgo that expectation, they risk being shunned by an industry who relies on it.

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Future, Ciara, and Russell Wilson Drama Continues

In the age of #MeToo and #TimesUp, my eyes have opened to sexism in the media, and one such realization lies in the fact that men are often way more dramatic and messy than women. Such is the case with Future, who took aim at Seattle Seahawks player and husband of Ciara (his baby mamma), Russell Wilson, during a Beats1 interview radio interview saying:

[Wilson] do exactly what she tell him to do… He not tellin’ her, ‘Chill out with that on the internet. Don’t even talk to him. I’m your husband! You better not even bring Future’s name up!’ If that was me, she couldn’t even bring his name up. She know that. She couldn’t even bring her exes’ names up.

It’s interesting that Future recently said the hardest part of monogamy is a woman’s jealousy when his own statement about Ciara confirmed his hypocrisy. Any man that imposes parameters on what his wife/girlfriend can and cannot say is inherently possessive and jealous. That being said, Ciara and Wilson’s response seems even less mature. Posting a picture of Future’s son on social media is an innate jab wrapped in a pretty bow. If Future has inherent issues with his access/role in his son’s life, keep it private. In fact, keep the entire thing private.

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All that matters. #Love

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Rise Above.

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