#Grammy Nominees 2020

[brian-in-finance]

I know this is a long shot but has Cait ever been on an EMMY prediction list? Usually she was on the GG. Amazed that she is here even if not in the top 6.

https://variety.com/lists/2024-emmys-lead-actress-drama-predictions/also-in-contention-2/

Thanks for the message, Anon. 😃

Your link includes Variety’s predictions of nominees in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series category for the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards. Nominations will be announced on 17 July and the Emmys awarded on 15 September.

Variety included this photo in its story published yesterday, 11 April 2024:

Photo : Robert Wilson for Starz

It’s not a long shot, as you suggest. To date, she’s never been nominated, but predictions lists have included Caitríona’s name every Outlander season. Here are some examples:

The Wrap 2015 / Season 1

E! News 2016 / Season 2

Awards Watch 2018 / Season 3

Spoiler TV 2019 / Season 4

Gold Derby 2020 / Season 5

We Are Actors (Variety) 2022 / Season 6

Variety 2024 / Season 7

Outlander has been nominated four times.

Screenshot: IMDb

Regarding 2024 Emmys for Drama, Variety has published its predictions lists for Drama Series, Lead Actor, and Lead Actress. The lists for Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Directing, Writing, and Casting are pending. Maybe we’ll see more Outlander representation in those five categories? 🍿

Remember… I'm thinking about naming my first son Emmy so I can say I've got one. I want Emmy, Oscar, and Tony - and my daughter Grammy. — Noah Wyle

😂 According to IMDb, Noah Wyle has two children, sons, and neither is named Emmy. He received five Emmy nominations for playing Dr John Carter on ER.

[broadwaydivastournament]

Broadway Divas Tournament: Round 1D

Luba Mason (1961) has led a multi-hyphenate career with stage shows like How to Succeed...(1995), Girl from the North Country (2020), and Chicago as Velma Kelly. Her exquisite vocal talents have led her to trademark her own musical style "mixtura," and she has toured internationally in concerts alongside her 17-time Grammy-winner husband Ruben Blades. Luba is a first-generation of Slovak descent and cycled through several stage names in the 90s (Kim Freshwater, Lubitza Gregus, Luba Gregus) until settling into Luba Mason.

Annette Bening (1958) is a two-time Tony nominee for Costal Disturbances (1987), and All My Sons (2019). Though primarily a screen actress, she makes our list because she is the newly appointed Chair of the Board for the Entertainment Community Fund (formerly the Actors' Fund), a charitable organization that provides "human services nationally for people who work in film, theater, television, music, opera, radio and dance." This organization is a vital part of Broadway's vast support system, and her taking over from Brian Stokes Mitchell's 20+ year service is a big change.

PROPAGANDA AND MEDIA UNDER CUT: ALL POLLS HERE

"I am looking...respectfully. Luba Mason is 5'10" and I want to climb this woman like a tree. I have a very short list of women whose voices I have fallen in love with from the very first note, and she is damn near at the top of the list. An alto over sixty who leans into her sex appeal? Oh, fuck yeah. The sheer confidence to play the drums wearing THAT outfit? Unmatched."

"Big fan of Annette Bening playing lesbians on screen, but this poll isn't about that. So. Allow me to use this space to talk about the great work the Entertainment Community Fund does. While it's more synonymous with Broadway than Hollywood, any actor, musician, entertainer, stage/film crew, etc. is eligible to take advantage of its services and seek aid. The transfer of leadership into Annette's capable hands means a shift to the West Coast, at least in terms of where she's based. Whether this will mean any major upheaval for the mainly East Coast-based organization remains to be seen."

[shefaniquotes]

“It felt so good singing with you, our song!”

Gwen’s BTS video from The Voice set, November 2017

“Even though I’m a loser as a Grammy nominee, I’m a winner as a performer because I performed with you.”

Gwen’s Instagram story, January 2020

“Anytime I get a chance to play a show with Gwen Stefani, holy shit, I’m excited.”

“I literally almost forgot to start singing when she came out. I swear.”

Blake’s Cisco Live show in Las Vegas, June 2023

Blake on performing with Gwen, various sources (see also 1 ,2, 3, 4)

[the1975attheirverybest]

Just noticed the 1975 isnt nominated for any Grammys, not even best alt album for BFIAFL

Like this is def a snub what the fuck??

Then i just watched Mattys rant from November about the Grammys like he should be angry this is bullshit that they keep getting shunned

The podcast couldn't have affected this, right? Ugh

Oh, the podcast absolutely has affected this!! The GRAMMYS are a bunch of uppity folks, sadly. And the don’t like anything remotely “controversial,” “political,” or that doesn’t have mass appeal. And Matty….well. He’s all of those things.

Also, Matty has sort of “rejected” them before hahahaha. Like during ABIIOR when he made fun of them for nominating GYAT for “best rock song.” The GRAMMYs don’t take kindly to criticism.

There’s also a bunch of other reasons. Like, the committee which selects who’s nominated has been criticized over and over for favoritism. Two years ago or something, some of the women of color who were invited to be on the committee said it was an awful experience for them. Cuz every time they’d suggest an artist who, they thought, did especially good work (very often queer, female, poc…) they were told no. And they said it felt like the nominees were already decided on. It’s always the popular people whose labels are friendly with the Grammys and shit. So Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, etc.

They’ve snubbed plenty of amazing artists before. I remember when The Weeknd’s 2020 album didn’t get a SINGLE NOMINATION despite the insane creative work that went into the album, the music video, the character he portrayed…mad. Years ago they did the same to Kendrick Lamar when he WAS nominated but didn’t win even though his album was clearly leaguesssss above others. There is an entire wiki page about the GRAMMYS being accused of racism. Cuz…well, they’re racist.

So anyway the long and the short of this is that even though BFIAFL or at the very least About You absolutely deserved the nomination, Matty and the band’s ethics scare them and I don’t think they will ever give the 1975 a win. Especially now that Matty has called them out lmao.

[gone2soon-rip]

DAME ANGELA LANSBURY (1925-Died October 11th 2022,at 96). British American actress and singer who played many film, theatre and television roles. With one of the longest careers in the entertainment industry, her career spanned over 80 years, much of it in the United States; her work also received much international attention. Upon the death of Olivia de Havilland in July 2020, Lansbury became the earliest surviving Academy Award nominee and one of the last stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema.Lansbury was born to an upper-middle-class family in central London, the daughter of Irish actress Moyna Macgill and English politician Edgar Lansbury. To escape the Blitz, in 1940 she moved to the United States, there studying acting in New York City. Proceeding to Hollywood in 1942, she signed to MGM and obtained her first film roles, in Gaslight (1944) and The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945), earning her two Oscar nominations and a Golden Globe Award. She appeared in 11 further MGM films, mostly in minor roles, and after her contract ended in 1952 she began supplementing her cinematic work with theatrical appearances. Although largely seen as a B-list star during this period, her appearance in the film The Manchurian Candidate (1962) received widespread acclaim and is cited as being one of her finer performances leading her to her third Academy Award nomination. Moving into musical theatre, Lansbury finally gained stardom for playing the leading role in the Broadway musical Mame (1966), which earned her her first Tony Award and established her as a gay icon.Amid difficulties in her personal life, Lansbury moved from California to County Cork, Ireland in 1970, and continued with a variety of theatrical and cinematic appearances throughout that decade. These included leading roles in the stage musicals Gypsy, Sweeney Todd, and The King and I, as well as in the hit Disney film Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971). Moving into television in 1984, she achieved worldwide fame as fictional writer and sleuth Jessica Fletcher in the American whodunit series Murder, She Wrote, which ran for 12 seasons until 1996, becoming one of the longest-running and most popular detective drama series in television history. Through Corymore Productions, a company that she co-owned with her husband Peter Shaw, Lansbury assumed ownership of the series and was its executive producer for the final four seasons. She also moved into voice work, contributing to animated films like Disney's Beauty and the Beast (1991) and Don Bluth's Anastasia (1997). She toured in a variety of international productions and continued to make occasional film appearances such as Nanny McPhee (2005) and Mary Poppins Returns (2018).Lansbury received an Honorary Academy Award, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the BAFTA, a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award and five additional Tony Awards, six Golden Globes, and an Olivier Award. She also was nominated for numerous other industry awards, including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress on three occasions, and various Primetime Emmy Awards on 18 occasions, and a Grammy Award. In 2014, Lansbury was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II. Her Murder,She Wrote,co star,Ron Masak,who played the cadillac driving sheriff of Cabot Cove, Mort Metzger,died just nine days later,on October 20th.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angela_Lansbury

[venusvity]

seeing the "if venus lineup was made out of all foreigners" made me wonder... what if they were a american/western girl group (something like little mix or boys world) ?? (i hope it's not a bother) so excited for baebi album btw!!

VENUS is a five-member American girl group formed in 2015 when the girls were in high school together. They would rise to fame while competing on the reality show "American Idol" in 2017, where they would rank second in the finale. They were soon approached by Simon Cowell, who offered them a recording deal, which the girls gladly took. They would go on to debut in 2018 with the digital single "Hair" to mass success.

VENUS would later go on to sign a deal with RCA and Colombia Records in 2020 after two years of successful releases. The girls are one of the most successful female groups of all time, amassing over 74 million sales between their 5 full albums.

During their 5 year career, the girls have been on five world tours, twelve American tours, six tours of Europe, four tours of Asia, and three tours of Latin America. They are often referred to as global phenomenons due to their notoriety all across the globe.

They won their first Grammy in 2020 winning Record Of The Year as well as Song Of The Year with their smash hit "Touch" after being strong nominees for the past two years.

The Venus members would all have strong solo careers as well with every member releasing solo albums or venturing into acting and making their own brands.

JULIA "BABY" ZHAO was born in 1997 and is the group's MAIN DANCER, CENTER, and LEADER. She was born in Miami, Florida and is the founding member of VENUS. She came up with the name alongside Ophelia. She has three number-one solo albums to her name.

DANICA JONES was born in 2001 and is the YOUNGEST and LEAD VOCALIST. Danica is the younger sister of founding member, Ophelia. Danica was the last member added to the group after begging her sister for weeks to let her join. She now has two solo albums to her name and a thriving modeling career.

CHLOE MOSS was born in 1997 and is the group's LEAD DANCER and MAIN VOCALIST. She was born in Seattle, Washington, but moved with her family to Miami when she was seven, meeting fellow member Julia soon after. She has three record-breaking solo singles to her name but mainly focuses on VENUS and her makeup line. She has no relation to model Kate Moss despite it being a running gag in the fandom.

OPHELIA JONES was born in 1998 and is the group's MAIN VOCALIST and SONGWRITER. She is the elder sister of Danica, who she would allow to join the group after weeks of her pestering and begging. Ophelia is known as on of the most credited songwriters in the modern pop era, writing songs for the likes of Dua Lipa, Lady Gaga, SZA, Harry Styles, and many more globally known artists. Ophelia has one chart-topping solo album to her name and is currently working on the second.

YVETTE COLE was born in 1996 and is the ELDEST and LEAD VOCALIST of the group. She was born in Lyon, France, before moving to Miami, Florida when she was eight. She has two chart-topping solo albums to her name but moreso focuses on her blossoming acting career.

[digicomm-timecapsule-20009]

Week 6 - A #CancelCulture Crisis (TW - Sexual assault and abuse)

Nowadays whenever someone does or says something wrong, be it defending a convicted criminal or something much more trivial, the first instinct a lot of people on the internet have is to “cancel them” In recent years the term “Cancel Culture” grown ever more prominent, with nearly everyone who uses the internet regularly being familiar with this term. But what is “Cancel Culture”, and is it actually useful?

The basic dictionary definition of “Cancel Culture” is defined as “the practice or tendency of engaging in mass canceling as a way of expressing disapproval and exerting social pressure” (Merriam-Webster, n.d.) In simpler terms, cancel culture is a collective boycott done by the masses or common-folk like you and I directed towards something or someone after a perceived wrongdoing. It’s also a phenomenon that happens primarily on its birthplace, the internet, and is usually used to shed light on something horrible that has happened for the purpose of seeking justice for the victims or prevention from it happening again.

Social media has also been pivotal in cancel culture’s rise. When we think about some of the prominent “cancellations” that pushed cancel culture into the forefront of everyone’s minds and vocabulary, disgraced celebrities like R. Kelly, Louis C. K. and Kevin Spacey usually come to mind given their various sexual assault and abuse crimes were heavily talked about when cancel culture was becoming prominent. (Lo-Booth, 2024) Hashtags like #MuteRKelly were plastered across social media, an incident which can be considered a success for cancel culture and what it stands for.

Born in 2017 and popularized in 2018, #MuteRKelly was a campaign launched by two grassroots activists seeking to put him behind bars for his numerous crimes. And these crimes weren’t new either. For years rumors of his abhorrent conduct towards young black and brown children and especially young women were circulating with numerous attempts being made to draw attention to them but to no avail. However, in the eve of a concert R. Kelly was set to have in Atlanta, the hashtag was launched and quickly morphed into an international campaign to bring R. Kelly to justice. (Barnes, 2021) And it worked! In June of 2022 R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his crime of using his celebrity status to sexually abuse children and women. (Savage, 2023)

Now while that’s all well and good, there have been times cancel culture has backfired spectacularly. Remember earlier when I mentioned Louis C.K.? In 2017 he was hit with allegations from five different women who accused the comedian of masturbating in their presence as well as committing other sexually inappropriate acts towards them. While he previously denied the allegations ultimately C.K. admitted to his wrongdoings and spent the next five years laying low in the media’s eye whilst still selling out dozens of comedy shows. And then he won a Grammy. (Jones, 2022)

In 2022 C.K. took home the Grammy for “best comedy album” from the 64th Grammy awards beating out five other nominees. Naturally the internet was in uproar, but this isn’t the first time cancel culture has resulted in a temporary solution to a much bigger problem. Musicians like Micheal Jackson and yep, even R. Kelly, saw their music streams increasing despite decades of cancellations for their misdeeds. (ProCon, 2020) 

So is cancel culture worth it? Well, yes. But also no…You see it depends on the context of the cancellation. When cancel culture is applied to a serious crime, like say sexual assault, then it’s absolutely worth it and even necessary. Yes streams for R, Kelly’s music did increase but he’s also in jail now and that’s partly thanks to cancel culture. However, the line gets blurred when the crime isn’t as clear cut as that. 

In a world where social media condenses complicated social issues into minute-long exposes, something as complicated as human nature gets turned into a black or white issue where if you aren’t on the side of the cancellation it automatically makes you a bad person. In turn what this does is it discourages discussions, when in actuality a nuanced discussion is sometimes all that’s necessary. (Dudenhoefer, 2020)

At the end of the day, maybe that’s what we should all practice going forward. Encouraging discussions and actually listening to what’s being said in those conversations. 

References

Barnes, K. T. 2021, R. Kelly Has Finally Been Silenced. Let’s Keep It That Way, Time, viewed 6 May 2024, <https://time.com/6102538/r-kelly-conviction-mute/>. 

Dudenhoefer, N. 2020, Is Cancel Culture Effective?, University of Central Florida, viewed 7 May 2024, <https://www.ucf.edu/pegasus/is-cancel-culture-effective/>. 

Jones, D. 2022, Louis C.K. Crawls Out of Cancellation, Wins a Grammy and Triggers a Backlash, KQED, viewed 7 May 2024, <https://www.kqed.org/arts/13911520/louis-c-k-crawls-out-of-cancellation-wins-a-grammy-and-triggers-a-backlash>. 

Lo-Booth, M 2024, Cancel Culture: What Is It and Why Should I Care In 2023?, Vice, viewed 6 May 2024, <https://www.vice.com/en/article/dy35jm/cancel-culture-meaning>. 

Merriam-Webster, n.d., Cancel culture, Merriam-Webster, viewed 6 May 2024, <https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cancel%20culture>. 

ProCon, 2020, Is cancel culture (or “callout culture”) good for society?, ProCon, viewed 7 May 2024, <https://www.procon.org/headlines/is-cancel-culture-or-callout-culture-good-for-society/>. 

Savage, M. 2023, R. Kelly: The history of his crimes and allegations against him, BBC, viewed 7 May 2024, <https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-40635526>.

[justinsentertainmentcorner]

Li Zhou at Vox:

There’s long been outrage over the Grammys’ Beyoncé snubs for the awards show’s highest honor — omissions that have infuriated fans and prominent celebrities alike.

At the 2024 awards on February 4, Beyonce’s husband, Jay-Z, became the latest to call them out, castigating the show for its history of overlooking Black artists, including his superstar wife. “We want y’all to get it right — at least get it close to right,” Jay-Z said. “I don’t want to embarrass this young lady, but she has more Grammys than everyone and never won Album of the Year. So even by your own metrics that doesn’t work.” He became the latest of many prominent figures who’ve raised this point in some fashion, including the likes of Adele and, famously, Kanye West in the past. Increasingly, the references to Beyoncé being overlooked by institutions like the Grammys and the MTV Video Music Awards have become more common both because of how egregious they feel on the merits and also because of what they represent. Beyond serving as an insult to her undeniable talent, Beyoncé’s treatment and the specific awards she has and hasn’t won have become emblematic of the exclusion of Black art by the music establishment. They are often cited as some of the most prominent examples that capture this problem.

Why some awards matter more than others

As Jay-Z noted, Beyoncé has the most Grammys of any musical artist — 32 — but she hasn’t ever won the coveted Album of the Year award. AOTY is widely considered the most prestigious honor of the show, much like Best Directing or Best Picture is for the Oscars, and it’s often treated like the greatest recognition that the program has on offer. Beyoncé has been nominated for AOTY four times as a solo artist but has lost out each time. In 2010, she was nominated for I Am … Sasha Fierce, which lost to Taylor Swift’s Fearless. In 2015, she was nominated for Beyoncé, which lost to Beck’s Morning Phase. In 2017, she was nominated for Lemonade, which lost to Adele’s 25. And in 2023, she was nominated for Renaissance, which lost to Harry Styles’s Harry’s House.

In 2017, the year that Lemonade lost, Adele spoke about it explicitly in her AOTY acceptance speech and emphasized the cultural impact that Beyoncé’s record had had. “I can’t possibly accept this award. And I’m very humbled and I’m very grateful and gracious. But my artist of my life is Beyoncé. And this album to me, the Lemonade album, is just so monumental,” Adele said. As the most important honor of the show, AOTY sends a powerful signal regarding the cultural impact that an artist has had, making Beyoncé’s longstanding exclusion from a win in that category especially significant. Notably, despite winning 32 Grammys, she has only won one of what are known as the “Big Four” awards of the show: Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist. In 2010, she won Song of the Year for her hit song “Single Ladies.”

What the Beyoncé snubs represent

This history is ultimately indicative of the Grammys’ and other organizations’ much deeper problems with race. In addition to the Grammys, both the Oscars and the Golden Globes have been scrutinized for excluding Black artists. Beyoncé’s losses (and, in some cases, lack of recognition outright) in key categories underscore how Black artists have been overlooked for the most prestigious awards at the Grammys. Per a 2021 study from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, Black artists constituted 38 percent of all artists on Billboard’s Top 100 between 2012 to 2020 but just 26.7 percent of Grammy nominees for the Big Four awards in that timeframe. [...]

There are other reasons the Grammys have long had a credibility issue with the hip-hop community, as A.D. Carson, a professor of hip-hop at the University of Virginia, wrote for the Washington Post in 2022. Jay-Z alluded to some examples of this exclusion in his Sunday remarks, describing how DJ Jazzy Jeff and Will Smith boycotted the Grammy Awards in 1989 when they won the first Grammy for best rap performance because the show wouldn’t televise the presentation of the new award. The Grammys’ history of confining Black artist nominations to certain categories, such as rap and hip-hop, has also drawn scrutiny, Carson writes. And there have been concerns that the list of Black artists the show has chosen to elevate underscores, in his words, a “trend of respected rap artists being overlooked in favor of those who crossed over into pop music and gained the most White fans.”

Jay-Z is right: Beyoncé has been unfairly snubbed at the Grammys for the highest honor awards like Album Of The Year.

[forfoxessake]

February (2023)

A good month over all, I spent half of it travelling abroad and still managed to come across good things with the time that I had. 

I saw 5 movies this month, finished reading 2 books (I’m currently reading 7 and I’m listening to a radioplay).   I just noticed that I have yet to go to the cinema this year, but I want to fix that as soon as possible.

Ghost World (2001) - I somehow missed out on this film while growing up, I do get why it wasnt so easily available, there’s some difficult subjects in there, but I think my teenage self would have found something important here. And I miss Thora Birch 

Tuesday (2015) - “Aftersun” Charlotte Wells is just as brilliant in a ten-minute short and I don't know why I'm surprised.

Apollo: Missions to the Moon (2019) -  I like all things space and I love documentaries, and even the whole moon race thing, but this was not a great one.

Where the Crawdads Sing (2022) - I like Daisy Edgar-Jones a lot and she deserved better than this film that just slowly goes nowhere. 

Unpregnant (2020) -  Two girls who used to be close friends reconnect on a road trip where the goal is an abortion. It's not your usual coming-of-age story but it's an important one that needs to be represented just as much as anything else. Haley and Barbie do a great job of having enough chemistry to carry us on this emotional but also fun-crazy-political ride.

...

Dial A for Aunties by   Jesse Q. Sutanto - I have a feeling that some books from the romance contemporary genre are writen as if people are expecting it to become a rom-com movie. Some of the plot is clearly meant to be watched, not read, and it makes it boring, which was really sad in this since the first 100 pages are really interesting and different from the usual. 

Twelfth Night -  William Shakespeare - I have been following an youtuber Shakespeare challenge and now that we are almost over I don’t think I want to keep it up, it’s been fun, specially when so many plot points are easily reconizable from inumerals references in every media ever since, but it’s also been a while since I was hooked by one of his plays, peharps the best is behind us now. 

...

I finished What We do In The Shadows - season 04, it was absolutely perfect, not a single episode out of place, it left me wanting more and I love that they always manage to keep the plot in focus and move the story fowards.

I’m still halfway through Andor, I’m moving slow, it’s an universe I love and I like that it’s more serious and complex than anything else in Star Wars but I’m having a hard time focusing on it.

Doom Patrol is another one I’m moving slowly, still 6 more episodes until the end of the 1st season, and I’m truly enjoying it, the characters, the crazy plots and this universe that is so funny sometimes that I can’t believe this is not bigger. 

...

Albums

Turnstile - Glow On has been a favorite this month, they didn’t win a Grammy but they were my favorite out of all the nominees this year. 

Songs 

Tragician - Frank Iero and The Cellabration - the album version and this acoustic perfomance on the link that I wish was an official recording too.

[shefanispeculator]

Seeing Stars! The 9 Most Successful 'Voice' Competitors of All Time

'The Voice' may never find its Carrie Underwood but that's okay.

One of the major complaints about The Voice is that it has yet to launch a major recording career like American Idol did in its early days. But host Carson Daly says that the days of discovering a Carrie Underwood or Kelly Clarkson on a TV show are long gone.

“Your measuring stick is antiquated because of the way that technology has proliferated,” Daly exclusively tells Parade. “For instance, I could never do TRL [his Total Request Live show] again because this generation has the internet and doesn’t need MTV to get music. There are a lot of YouTubers, and my kids listen to music of people that you have never heard of, that I have never heard of. For some people, just getting to a place where they can support themselves making music, thanks to The Voice—that’s winning.”

And The Voice has several of those types of winners. Former contestants, including a couple of Grammy nominees, who are grateful to the show because their lives changed 100 percent, because as a result of appearing on The Voice, they now make their entire living making music, rather than having to have a day job to pay the bills.

Most Successful Voice Competitors

Koryn Hawthorne (Season 8)

was a member of Pharrell Williams’ team and finished fourth in her season. She has gone on to have a successful gospel career and was nominated twice for Grammys in the Gospel Performance/Song category: in 2019 for “Won’t He Do It” and in 2020 for “Speak the Name.” She has received several other nominations as well, including Billboard Awards and Soul Train Music Awards. She even broke the record for the longest chart-topping woman on the Hot Gospel Songs chart.

Nicolle Galyon (Season 2)

got just one coach to turn (Adam Levine) when she sang “You Save Me” during her Blind Audition. The country singer was eliminated during the Battle Rounds but made a discovery along the way: She didn’t want to sing, she wanted to write songs. While on the show, she met performers RaeLynn and Miranda Lambert (who was married to Blake Shelton at the time) and credits those friendships for launching her songwriting career. She earned her first No. 1 song with “We Were Us,” performed by Keith Urban and Lambert. She also has co-written songs for Lady A, Kenny Chesney, Florida Georgia Line and many others and co-wrote and co-produced RaeLynn’s first full-length album, WildHorse. Gaylon has two Grammy nominations for Best Country Song: in 2015 for Miranda Lambert’s “Automatic” and in 2019 for Dan + Shay’s “Tequila.”

Cassadee Pope (Season 3)

was the first female country singer to win The Voice. The former member of Blake Shelton's team has gone on to find success in country music, but a high point was when she and Chris Young received a Grammy nomination for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Think of You” in 2017.  Her single "Tomorrow Night" was released in Sept. and was followed by her third album, Thrive, in October.

Christina Grimmie (Season 3)

finished in third place on The Voice, and went on to open for Selena Gomez and The Scene, and perform backup vocals for Allstar Weekend and the Jonas Brothers. Christina's career was on the upswing—she had 2 million YouTube subscribers—when she was shot to death during a post-concert meet-and-greet with fans on June 10, 2016, in Orlando, Fla. She was 22.

Danielle Bradbery (Season 4 winner)

was only 16 when she won The Voice, the youngest winner at that point in time but no longer the record. Since graduating from Team Blake Shelton, Bradbery has gone on to have a successful country music career with 15 songs on the Hot Country chart, including "Goodbye Summer" with Thomas Rhett which rose to No. 39 in 2018. Her 2020 single "Never Have I Ever" reached No. 58 on U.S. Country Airplay, and her most-streamed song, "Sway," has 50 million streams. In July 2021, she released her latest single, "Stop Draggin' Your Boots."

Morgan Wallen (Season 6)

who was initially on Team Usher, but later stolen by Adam Levine, was eliminated in the Playoffs but soon headed to Nashville to try his hand at country music, rather than the pop songs he sang on the show. He had almost instant success, dropping four No. 1 singles, winning the CMA award for New Artist of the Year and releasing the double album Dangerous. “He was being hailed as the next big thing, maybe the next big crossover artist from country,” executive producer Audrey Morrissey says. Today, Wallen is more famous for getting in trouble. He got booted off of Saturday Night Live for breaking COVID-19 protocols in late 2020 and was banned from country radio after he was caught on video hollering a racial slur in February 2021.

Jordan Smith (Season 9)

was a four-chair turn who chose Team Adam. He went on to write “Ashes” for the Deadpool 2 soundtrack, which was performed by Celine Dion. In addition, he's had three No. 1 songs on the Hot Christian Songs chart and three top 10s. Jordan represented the state of Kentucky for NBC’s American Song Contest in 2022, for which he wrote and performed “Sparrow.” He finished in third place.

Sawyer Fredericks (Season 8)

The winner from Team Pharrell had an original song, “Silent World,” featured on the Season 6 debut of the Netflix original series Longmire, which aired in 2017, and his song “This Fire” was covered by John Ondrasik for a 2018 episode of Code Black. His  latest album debuted in 2020 called Flowers for You.

Loren Allred (Season 3)

was eliminated in the Playoffs but went on to make her Billboard Hot 100 debut with the Platinum-selling "Never Enough" from the musical soundtrack to The Greatest Showman. This past January, she was the featured singer on the original song “Start a Wave” when “World of Color – One” for Disney 100 debuted at Disneyland. Strangely, though, she made a return to reality TV, auditioning for Britain’s Got Talent’s 15th season in 2022, finishing in ninth place. In addition, she performs on Michael Bublé's Love album for a duet of "Help Me Make It Through the Night," and alongside David Foster, as part of his An Intimate Evening PBS concert special and album.

The 9 Most Successful 'Voice' Contestants of All Time - Parade

[biglisbonnews]

Paul Mescal Responds to Phoebe Bridgers Breakup Rumors Paul Mescal wants the online gossipmongers to mind their own business.On the heels of ongoing speculation about his potential breakup with musician Phoebe Bridgers, the Aftersun actor was asked if he ever felt compelled to address the chatter head on, which he said was definitely something that had crossed his mind.“I definitely feel the temptation to say the status of my whatever — that will always be there,” he recently told Vanity Fair, though he went on to say that he didn't "think that's a wise thing to do." "When 'Normal People' came out, I was very forthright in interviews, and it didn't actually serve me," Mescal continued. "But the temptation still exists to be like, 'Shut the fuck up.'" He added, "This is my life. This is what's going on. Or this is what's not going on.'"The pair got tongues wagging back in 2020 after "Motion Sickness" singer tweeted about being "sad and horny" after watching Normal People, leading Mescal to reply, "I'm officially dead." They then seemingly confirmed their romance after showing up together at the LACMA Art + Film Gala and the Met Gala the following year before making their relationship Instagram official in December 2021, which was later followed up by engagement speculation.However, fans began to suspect that the couple had broken up after listening to Bridgers' verse on SZA's "Ghost in the Machine," which talked about a fight that left her "on my own in an airport bar or hotel lobby." Shortly thereafter, the Grammy nominee was spotted out with comedian Bo Burnham prior to Vogue Australia appearing to accidentally confirm their breakup in a since-amended article that referred to Mescal as Bridgers' "former fiancé."Bridgers has yet to comment on their alleged split. In the meantime, you can see everything Mescal told Vanity Fair about the rumors here.Photos via Getty / Amanda Edwards & Kevin Winter / FilmMagic https://www.papermag.com/paul-mescal-phoebe-bridgers-response-2659421791.html

[taniahartanto]

Oscars 2024: Highest Ratings in 4 Years

According The New York Times, The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, and multiple other sources, the 2024 Oscars experienced a resurgence in viewership, drawing 19.5 million viewers, marking a four-year high in ratings. This increase was attributed to an earlier start time and the popularity of big box office hits like 'Barbie' and 'Oppenheimer.' Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the show saw a 4% rise in viewership from the previous year, with a 3.81 rating in the key demographic of adults 18-49.

However, the upward trend comes from an all-time low during the pandemic and is only a 4% increase from last year's audience of approximately 18.7 million viewers. The Oscars telecast, which aired on ABC, peaked in its final half-hour with 21.9 million viewers and was the most-watched awards show since 2020. Notably, 'Oppenheimer' led the night with seven awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Christopher Nolan. The event also featured wins for actors like Cillian Murphy and Emma Stone.

Despite the positive trend in viewership, there was a slight decrease in ratings among adults 18-49 compared to the previous year. The earlier start time of the show likely contributed to its audience growth, along with the presence of blockbuster nominees. The Oscars outperformed other major awards shows like the Grammys and Golden Globes in terms of viewership.

Overall, the 2024 Oscars showcased a return to form in terms of viewership numbers, reflecting a positive trend for live event TV and demonstrating the enduring appeal of prestigious award ceremonies like the Academy Awards.

[yessadirichards]

boygenius: The supergroup whose synergy reinvigorated rock

Los Angeles

Cream, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Audioslave, The Highwaymen -- the music industry is full of storied supergroups comprised, mostly, of men.

But it's 2024, and boygenius has entered the chat.

The indie rockers are up for six Grammys at Sunday's ceremony in Los Angeles, and member Phoebe Bridgers has a seventh nod for her collaboration with top nominee SZA.

Like many a supergroup before them, boygenius recently announced they're going on hiatus and returning to solo work -- but that's after an exceptional year on the road together.

And on Sunday, they'll get to celebrate.

Boygenius members Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus met as up-and-comers in the indie music scene and, tired of constant comparisons to each other as "women in rock," decided to join forces while continuing to produce solo work.

The creative venture turned into a winning bet: the trio amassed a loyal fan base with their 2018 eponymous EP, a debut -- hits included the arresting "Salt In The Wound" and the wrenching slow burn "Me & My Dog" -- that fused their distinct songwriting and styles to create, in a word, magic.

Calling the work "astonishing," music outlet NME gave the extended play a perfect critical score, writing it "serves as a reminder of each musician's particular powers -- Bridgers' ability to spin haunting, poetic folk-pop out of beautiful simplicity; Dacus' sage and, often, wry indie-rock; and Baker's dramatic, emo-tinged exorcisms of emotion."

The artists played a handful of tour dates before peeling off to focus on solo albums.

They each found individual success, in particular the 29-year-old Bridgers, who found growing mainstream fame with the 2020 album "Punisher," which featured the hit single "Kyoto," and a smash tour.

But fans and music journalists weren't having it: wanting more of the group's transcendent harmonies, they asked constantly for a reunion and a full studio album.

The band eventually got back together and gave in to the hype, announcing "the record" would be released in March 2023.

It was an instant hit and propelled boygenius on an in-demand tour that featured multiple festival appearances including at Coachella, which marked their first performances since the album's release.

The group also appeared on the Eras Tour of none other than Taylor Swift, who called boygenius' album "genuinely a masterpiece."

The group's work captures the ravages of heartache with eerie, melancholic tones that ascend into anthemic choruses with cathartic peaks.

But their personas both onstage and off are winky and playful -- three artists who write songs, crack jokes, and simply get along.

"We're obsessed with each other. I like myself better around them," Bridgers has said.

They opened each set on their rollicking tour with "The Boys Are Back in Town" -- the mid-1970s Thin Lizzy track -- and a nod to their name, which is a commentary on their negative experiences in an industry, and a world, that has historically prioritized the work of men.

"Men are taught to be entitled to space and that their ideas should be heard because they're great ideas and women are taught the opposite," Bridgers told Vogue.

"A 'boygenius' is someone who their whole life has been told that their ideas are genius."

And one of the group's great annoyances is the suggestion that they are remarkable by virtue of being women, or because they all identify as queer.

"Something that's been really important to us is to be able to exist like any other band: to make a sick song and have that not be weighted because of all these extraneous identifiers that we work within," the 28-year-old Baker told Rolling Stone last year.

In the same cover story, Dacus -- also 28 -- said working as a trio allowed the artists to be "able to commiserate about the less enjoyable aspects of this job... we have a shared experience that is not shared by a lot of other people in our lives."

Unlike many stars who put their careers and fan bases over rocking the boat, the members of boygenius wear their politics on their sleeves, routinely speaking out on transgender and abortion rights.

In 2023, when Barack Obama added their song "Not Strong Enough" to his annual music recommendations, Dacus' response was less than thrilled: "war criminal," she tweeted, likely referring to criticism the former president faced for authorizing deadly drone strikes in Yemen and Pakistan.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times last year, boygenius members had said they'd walk Grammy red carpets if they received nominations, with Dacus saying she's "kind of a bitch for spectacle."

They've got six chances locked in: let's hear it for the boys.

[thebaddestbears]

Timothy Cobb, Christmas Stories Christian Sands mack avenue, 2023

Pianist/composer Christian Sands' cinematic approach to popular holiday classics takes center stage with Christmas Stories, his first album since his critically acclaimed, GRAMMY-nominated 2020 release Be Water. Having performed in-demand Christmas shows at Jazz at Lincoln Center and around the world, Sands offers such classics as "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "Silent Night," "Jingle Bells," and "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," as well as a few surprises. Joining the NAACP Image Award nominee are vibraphonist Stefon Harris, saxophonist Jimmy Greene, guitarists Max Light and Marvin Sewell, bassist Yasushi Nakamura, percussionist Keita Ogawa, and drummer Ryan Sands.　Amazon

[rye-in-a-coat]

Tonight were the Grammy's, apparently. Another not relevant at all event for me. Did not watch fully, just some bits. I think Dua Lipa was like the only of those artists who I actually listen to, I have five songs from her in my playlists, I think.

But well, many music I liked from the 2010's never was a nominee for a Grammy. The most popular music right now won't be the one people and I will remember fondly in the future. I still don't know what exactly is defining this decade. Think about all the iconic 80's songs that came out in 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983; and how clearly 80's they are. We're at that point on this decade, what makes something so 2020's?

I guess time and looking back will tell us.

[albumaday2024]

Album a Day: Grammys AOTY addition

Day 14: Endless Summer Vacation

Miley Cyrus (Nominee)

March 10, 2023

Miley stepped away from the rock and glam rock elements featured in her previous album Plastic Hearts (2020) and turned to pop and dance pop for Endless Summer Vacation. There are still some rock elements along with country, disco, funk, and experiemental. The album is divided into "AM" and "PM" with Miley stating that AM represents "the morning time, where there's a buzz and energy and there's a potential of new possibilities" and PM "feels like there's a slinky, seediness and kind of a grime but a glamour at the same time".

The song "Flowers" interpolates "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor. The song paraphrases words to the song "When I was Your Man" which was reported to have been a song Miley's ex-husband, Liam Hemsworth, dedicated to her. This empowering self love anthem was released on Hemsworth birthday. Get him, Miley.

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Produced by: Kid Harpoon, Tyler Johnson, Greg Kurstin, Mike Will Made It, Jay Moon, Maxx Morando, Jesse Shatkin, Max Taylor-Sheppard, Jerome Williams, BJ Burton, Jonny Coffer, Zwiffa

Label: Colombia Records