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(Listen) to Sting’s Latest Cool World Music Track with Congolese Singer Gims, Following Shaggy Album

Roger Friedman
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(Listen) to Sting’s Latest Cool World Music Track with Congolese Singer Gims, Following Shaggy Album

Sting is working his way around the world with collaborators. First he had a Grammy winning album with Jamaican rapper Shaggy that turned into a sold out tour.

Now the ex-Police man has a new duet track out with Congolese rapper singer Gims. It’s a winner, and Sting’s voice never sounded better.

Sting just wrapped a seven week stint in Toronto on stage in his Broadway musical, “The Last Ship.” On May 24th he releases “My Songs,” a collection of his hits reimagined. Then there’s a tour for that album and, and and…so many projects!

But I really love this song, called “Reste.” If only Sting would take a rest, but he can’t, he won’t. He loves the music too much!

Cha Cha Cha Madonna’s $5 Mil “Medellin” Performance on the BBMAs Was Worth the Money

Roger Friedman
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Cha Cha Cha Madonna’s $5 Mil “Medellin” Performance on the BBMAs Was Worth the Money

Madonna and Maluma made for a nice, if slow, dancing couple on the Billboard Music Awards. The production was very cool, with lots of Madonna’s Madame X personalities popping up. Excellent choreography, too. The “Medellin” song is still pretty dull, but this allowed Madonna to shine at her best. A plus.

 

Exclusive: Quentin Tarantino Film Going to Cannes, Sources Say Party Has Been Booked for “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: Quentin Tarantino Film Going to Cannes, Sources Say Party Has Been Booked for “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

You know, in Cannes, it’s about the party, not just the film.

So sources from the Cote d’Azur say it’s a go, Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” is coming to the festival after all.

It will play on Tuesday, May 21st, the 25th anniversary of “Pulp Fiction” in Cannes.

The Croisette is abuzz with the likes of Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, and Leonardo DiCaprio walking the red carpet, having private parties, holding court at the Hotel du Cap.

There was some question about the film making it since it wasn’t announced with the rest of the Cannes line up.

The Festival needs this movie badly, with few other big stars coming, and even fewer American movies of note. The time between “Rocketman” on the first Tbursday, and “OUT” is filled with films in foreign languages and not a lot of glitter.

So sacre bleu! Congratulations to Thierry Fremaux. He can get some sleep, at last.

PS I’m hearing the party, which should be the hottest ticket of all, should be taking place at the Albane Terrace at the JW Marriott. Stay tuned…

 

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Oscar Winner Anjelica Huston, Star of Two Woody Allen Movies, Says She’d Work with Him Again “In a Second”

Roger Friedman
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Oscar Winner Anjelica Huston, Star of Two Woody Allen Movies, Says She’d Work with Him Again “In a Second”

Last week, I told you that French movie legend Catherine Deneuve said she’d be happy work with Woody Allen if he asked.

Today, Anjelica Huston tells New York magazine’s Vulture the same thing. She starred in “Crimes and Misdemeanors” and in “Manhattan Murder Mystery.” She tells Andrew Goldman she’d work with Woody again “in a second.”

from the interview:

You were in two Woody Allen films, Crimes and Misdemeanors, alongside Mia Farrow, and then Manhattan Murder Mystery. Woody Allen is basically unable to make films now because of the outcry about the molestation allegations.
I think that’s after two states investigated him, and neither of them prosecuted him.

Well, the industry seems to be treating him as though he’s guilty. Would you work with him again?
Yeah, in a second.

Huston gives a wide ranging interview about her life with father, John Huston, the famed director, as well as Jack Nicholson, Ryan O’Neal, and her late husband, artist Robert Graham. It’s a great read.

 

Elton John “Rocketman” BioPic Soundtrack Avoids “Bohemian Rhapsody” Trap, Include New Song, Eligible for Oscars

Roger Friedman
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Elton John “Rocketman” BioPic Soundtrack Avoids “Bohemian Rhapsody” Trap, Include New Song, Eligible for Oscars

The tracklisting for Elton John’s “Rocketman” is out on iTunes, and it shows the filmmakers have avoided the “Bohemian Rhapsody” trap of not having a new song for the Oscars. Sir Elton and star Taron Egerton sing “I’m Gonna Love Me Again” at the end of the movie, maybe over the credits. This will qualify them for a Best Song at the Academy Awards. Smart move.

The “Rocketman” tracklist shows that the movie sticks close to the early mid part of Elton’s career. leaving out a ton of songs which may turn up in the movie briefly and not as full bits. But it also shows that it’s not necessarily chronological, but more of a “fantasy” of musical numbers. Expect the soundtrack to hit number 1 when it’s released on May 24th.

The movie opens in Cannes on May 16th, and around the world on May 31st.

1
The Bitch Is Back (Introduction)
Taron Egerton & Sebastian Rich

2
I Want Love
Kit Connor, Gemma Jones, Bryce Dallas Howard & Steven Mackintosh

3
Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)
Taron Egerton & Kit Connor

4
Thank You for All Your Loving
Taron Egerton

5
Border Song
Taron Egerton

6
Rock and Roll Madonna (Interlude)
Taron Egerton

7
Your Song
Taron Egerton

8
Amoreena
Taron Egerton

9
Crocodile Rock
Taron Egerton

10
Tiny Dancer
Taron Egerton

11
Take Me to the Pilot
Taron Egerton

12
Hercules
Taron Egerton

13
Don’t Go Breaking My Heart (Interlude)
Taron Egerton & Rachel Muldoon

14
Honky Cat
Taron Egerton & Richard Madden

15
Pinball Wizard (Interlude)
Taron Egerton

Rocket Man
Taron Egerton

17
Bennie and the Jets (Interlude)
Taron Egerton

18
Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me
Taron Egerton & Celinde Schoenmaker

19
Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word
Taron Egerton

20
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Taron Egerton & Jamie Bell

21
I’m Still Standing
Taron Egerton

22
(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again
Elton John & Taron Egerton

Ron Howard’s Sensational Documentary about Luciano Pavarotti: Rare Footage of How Opera Legend Begged Bono and U2 to Write and Record a Song with Him

Roger Friedman
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Ron Howard’s Sensational Documentary about Luciano Pavarotti: Rare Footage of How Opera Legend Begged Bono and U2 to Write and Record a Song with Him

Oscar winner Ron Howard and his teams from Imagine and White Horse Pictures have made a sensational new documentary about opera legend Luciano Pavarotti. It includes rare interviews with the superstar tenor’s ex wife, his widow, his mistresses, and his daughters.

“Pavarotti” nonetheless is a joyous film about a genius who was larger than life and adored by millions, including all those women. He comes across as the Picasso of opera.

What this team really pulled off was finding rare footage of how Pavarotti sandbagged Bono of U2, and the whole group into writing a song for him, recording it with him, and performing at his charity. Pavarotti and Bono subsequently became great friends, but the way it all started has never been seen, and it’s hilarious.

When Bono dodged Pavarotti’s calls and letters, the tenor got on a plane and went to Dublin. He called Bono and said, “I’m waiting for you in the studio.” Bono said, but we’re in Ireland. And Pavarotti replied, “I am here.” Bono was shocked. Howard told me last night that Edge, Larry Mullen, and Adam Clayton literally hid in another part of the studio because they didn’t want to get involved with it. Why would this world renown rock band want to record with an opera star? It didn’t make sense.

Pavarotti called a press conference, and at it announced the band was singing with him at his charity. Bono first replies, on camera, that the band can’t do it, they’re busy. But when he realizes he’s cornered, he says, sheepishly, “When is it, exactly?”

Pavarotti lived an outsized life, and that comes across fully in the documentary, which comes out June 7th from CBS Films. Howard and crew remarkably, and very sensitively, weave the story of the singer’s mistresses into the one about his wife of 39 years, Adua Veroni, who speaks for the first time on camera about their life together. They had three daughters, who are also in film. But Pavarotti was a man of large appetites, and eventually he split from Veroni for a much, much younger woman. Nicoleta Montovani, even now only 49, was married to him for the last four years of his life. They also had a daughter, now age 15.

But the movie’s focus is on the music. There is nothing like this man’s voice in the world, and that is fully conveyed with clips from various performances and footage from his time with the The Three Tenors including his pals Placido Domingo, José Carreras, and conductor Zubin Mehta. You leave the theater on a high note- Pavarotti was famous for his high notes– on a white, puffy cloud of thrills. Thank Puccini for that, too, since “Nessun Dorma” still has that effect after almost 100 years.

 

 

These Are the Breaks: Rap Pioneer Kurtis Blow in LA Hospital for Aortic Heart Valve Surgery

Roger Friedman
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These Are the Breaks: Rap Pioneer Kurtis Blow in LA Hospital for Aortic Heart Valve Surgery

We are wishing pioneer rapper Kurtis Blow all the best today. He posted on Instagram that he’s in UCLA hospital for surgery on his aortic valve. Kurtis had almost the very first rap hit way back with “The Breaks,” still a great record.

Back in fall 2016, Kurtis Walker (his real name) had a previous heart incident. On October 29th, the then legendary 57-year-old rap icon went into cardiac arrest, his pulse stopping for five minutes. He almost died in front of his Woodland Hills, CA home.

He writes now: “To all my friends and family. I am in the hospital at UCLA Medical. I am preparing for an aortic artery repair procedure tomorrow morning. The procedure will stabilize the artery from further damage caused by the hematoma I contacted from my recent travels to China. Dr Kwon is an incredible surgeon with hundreds of these procedures under his belt. I trust that God will use him as a tool of success tomorrow.
Please keep me in prayer. I will see you all soon!!!! Encouraged!!! KB”

Kurtis, take care of yourself!

 

 

Sunday: “Game of Thrones” Longest Ever Episode Attracts 12 Million Viewers, Pulls Following Show, “Barry” to New Highs

Roger Friedman
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Sunday: “Game of Thrones” Longest Ever Episode Attracts 12 Million Viewers, Pulls Following Show, “Barry” to New Highs

Sunday night’s 82 minute episode of “Game of Thrones” scored a dizzying 12 million viewers for HBO. The Battle of Winterfell was a massive success because we don’t even know the full extent of its viewing across HBO platforms.

But what we do know is that the show that follows “GoT” has also gone crazy. Bill Hader’s “Barry” had 2 million viewers, even more than last week. Before “Thrones” started airing, “Barry” had 450,000 viewers. And this past week’s episode, which was psychedelic, w0uld never have been seen by so many people.

“Veep,” which was hilarious, scored 1 million fans, which is excellent. It sure seems like Jonah, revealed as the product of incest, may be elected president. That would be the proper ending for this insanely wonderful show.

Meantime, the Kardashians bounced back a little from last week, but they are still dying in the vine.

On Showtime, “Billions” hangs tough with 750K viewers in its first run. Like a lot of people, I watched it after “Thrones.” “Billions” is sheer genius and a guilty pleasure. Nina Arianda is killing it. Damian Lewis, Paul Giamatti and Maggie Siff are better than ever. Kevin Pollak has been a great guest star. Asia Kate Dillon continues to rock. I am so happy to see Samantha Mathis every week. Emmy nominations, please! If it doesn’t happen this time, something is corrupted in the system!

 

2019 Tony Nominations: Snubs for “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “Network,” “Hillary and Clinton,” Glenda Jackson, King Lear

Roger Friedman
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2019 Tony Nominations: Snubs for “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “Network,” “Hillary and Clinton,” Glenda Jackson, King Lear

The Tony Awards didn’t buy what producer Scott Rudin was selling this year. They snubbed his big budget productions of “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “King Lear,” and “Hillary and Clinton,” giving some of the actors nominations but skipping his shows in the all important best of categories. They also skipped over Glenda Jackson as Lear, John Lithgow as Bill Clinton and dozens more.

Also not making the grade: “Network,” Paddy Chayefsky’s movie turned into a play. But star Bryan Cranston made the cut.

The worst snub: Leslie Kritzer of “Beetlejuice” deserved not only a nomination, but to win.

Two actors who also were ignored: Tracey Letts in “All My Sons” and Nathan Lane in “Gary.” The latter — see below–not a surprise. But Lane’s female co-stars Julie White and Kristine Nielsen were nommed for Featured Actress in a Play.

The Tony voters reached back to last fall and revived Janet McTeer’s exceptional performance in “Bernhardt/ Hamlet.” They also revived Elaine May’s beautiful work in “The Waverly Gallery.”

For some reason, “Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus” did make Best Play. It’s the worst thing I’ve seen in decades.

“Hadestown” led all shows with 14 nominations for a musical. It will win Best Musical and Best Score. “The Ferryman” will win Best Play, with nods to the nominated actors.

The Tony Awards air on CBS June 9th, hosted by James Corden. Full list to come.

Best Musical
Ain’t Too Proud—The Life and Times of The Temptations
Beetlejuice
Hadestown
The Prom
Tootsie

Best Play
Choir Boy by Tarell Alvin McCraney
The Ferryman by Jez Butterworth
Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus by Taylor Mac
Ink by James Graham
What the Constitution Means to Me by Heidi Schreck

Best Revival of a Musical
Kiss Me, Kate
Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!

Best Revival of a Play
Arthur Miller’s All My Sons
The Boys in the Band by Mart Crowley
Burn This
Torch Song by Harvey Fierstein
The Waverly Gallery by Kenneth Lonergan

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Brooks Ashmanskas, The Prom
Derrick Baskin, Ain’t Too Proud
Alex Brightman, Beetlejuice
Damon Daunno, Oklahoma!
Santino Fontana, Tootsie

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Stephanie J. Block, The Cher Show
Caitlin Kinnunen, The Prom
Beth Leavel, The Prom
Eva Noblezada, Hadestown
Kelli O’Hara, Kiss Me, Kate

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Paddy Considine, The Ferryman
Bryan Cranston, Network
Jeff Daniels, To Kill a Mockingbird
Adam Driver, Burn This
Jeremy Pope, Choir Boy

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Annette Bening, All My Sons
Laura Donnelly, The Ferryman
Elaine May, The Waverly Gallery
Janet McTeer, Bernhardt/Hamlet
Laurie Metcalf, Hillary and Clinton
Heidi Schreck, What the Constitution Means to Me

Best Book of a Musical
Ain’t Too Proud, Dominique Morisseau
Beetlejuice, Scott Brown and Anthony King
Hadestown, Anaïs Mitchell
The Prom, Bob Martin and Chad Beguelin
Tootsie, Robert Horn

Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
Be More Chill, Joe Iconis
Beetlejuice, Eddie Perfect
Hadestown, Anaïs Mitchell
The Prom, Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin
To Kill a Mockingbird, Adam Guettel
Tootsie, David Yazbek

Best Direction of a Musical
Rachel Chavkin, Hadestown
Scott Ellis, Tootsie
Daniel Fish, Oklahoma!
Des McAnuff, Ain’t Too Proud
Casey Nicholaw, The Prom

Best Direction of a Play
Rupert Goold, Ink
Sam Mendes, The Ferryman
Bartlett Sher, To Kill a Mockingbird
Ivo van Hove, Network
George C. Wolfe, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
Andre De Shields, Hadestown
Andy Grotelueschen, Tootsie
Patrick Page, Hadestown
Jeremy Pope, Ain’t Too Proud
Ephraim Sykes, Ain’t Too Proud

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
Lilli Cooper, Tootsie
Amber Gray, Hadestown
Sarah Stiles, Tootsie
Ali Stroker, Oklahoma!
Mary Testa, Oklahoma!

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Bertie Carvel, Ink
Robin De Jesús, The Boys in the Band
Gideon Glick, To Kill a Mockingbird
Brandon Uranowitz, Burn This
Benjamin Walker, All My Sons

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
Fionnula Flanagan, The Ferryman
Celia Keenan-Bolger, To Kill a Mockingbird
Kristine Nielsen, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus
Julie White, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus
Ruth Wilson, King Lear

Best Choreography
Camille A. Brown, Choir Boy
Warren Carlyle, Kiss Me, Kate
Denis Jones, Tootsie
David Neumann, Hadestown
Sergio Trujillo, Ain’t Too Proud

Best Orchestrations
Michael Chorney and Todd Sickafoose, Hadestown
Larry Hochman, Kiss Me, Kate
Daniel Kluger, Oklahoma!
Simon Hale, Tootsie
Harold Wheeler, Ain’t Too Proud

Best Scenic Design of a Musical
Robert Brill and Peter Nigrini, Ain’t Too Proud
Peter England, King Kong
Rachel Hauck, Hadestown
Laura Jellinek, Oklahoma!
David Korins, Beetlejuice

Best Scenic Design of a Play
Miriam Buether, To Kill a Mockingbird
Bunny Christie, Ink
Rob Howell, The Ferryman
Santo Loquasto, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus
Jan Versweyveld, Network

Best Costume Design of a Musical
Michael Krass, Hadestown
William Ivey Long, Beetlejuice
William Ivey Long, Tootsie
Bob Mackie, The Cher Show
Paul Tazewell, Ain’t Too Proud

Best Costume Design of a Play
Rob Howell, The Ferryman
Toni-Leslie James, Bernhardt/Hamlet
Clint Ramos, Torch Song
Ann Roth, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus
Ann Roth, To Kill a Mockingbird

Best Sound Design of a Musical
Peter Hylenski, Beetlejuice
Peter Hylenski, King Kong
Steve Canyon Kennedy, Ain’t Too Proud
Drew Levy, Oklahoma!
Nevin Steinberg and Jessica Paz, Hadestown

Best Sound Design of a Play
Adam Cork, Ink
Scott Lehrer, To Kill a Mockingbird
Fitz Patton, Choir Boy
Nick Powell, The Ferryman
Eric Sleichim, Network

Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Kevin Adams, The Cher Show
Howell Binkley, Ain’t Too Proud
Bradley King, Hadestown
Peter Mumford, King Kong
Kenneth Posner and Peter Nigrini, Beetlejuice

Best Lighting Design of a Play
Neil Austin, Ink
Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus
Peter Mumford, The Ferryman
Jennifer Tipton, To Kill a Mockingbird
Jan Versweyveld and Tal Yarden, Network

The final tally follows:
Hadestown – 14
Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations – 12
Tootsie – 11
The Ferryman – 9
To Kill a Mockingbird – 9
Beetlejuice – 8
Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! – 8
Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus – 7
The Prom – 7
Ink – 6
Network – 5
Choir Boy – 4
Kiss Me, Kate – 4
Arthur Miller’s All My Sons – 3
Burn This – 3
The Cher Show – 3
King Kong – 3
Bernhardt/Hamlet – 2
The Boys in the Band – 2
Torch Song – 2
The Waverly Gallery – 2
What the Constitution Means to Me – 2
Be More Chill – 1
Hillary and Clinton – 1
King Lear – 1

Madonna Wants to Spend $5 Mil on Billboard Music Awards Performance, but “Medellin” Has Only Earned $100K or Less So Far

Roger Friedman
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0
Madonna Wants to Spend $5 Mil on Billboard Music Awards Performance, but “Medellin” Has Only Earned $100K or Less So Far

Madonna is burning through money on her new single, “Medellin.”

According to TMZ, she’s going to spend $5 million to recreate the video she made with Colombian singer Maluma at the Billboard Music Awards.

No one knows what the video itself cost, but it looks like it cost $5 million in extras, costumes, make up and so on.

So far “Medellin” has sold just 9,600 copies according to Buzz Angle Music, from downloads. Including streaming, the number rises to 28,400. These are not good numbers.

On YouTube, “Medellin” has been viewed 12,700,000. That sounds like a lot but it isn’t. According to Quora, You Tubers make between $2,000 and $5,000 per million views. For example, at the high end, Ariana Grande streamed “7 Rings” 13 million times last week and made $109,000.

So Madonna has not cleared $100,000 for “Medellin” on everything all together. Maybe she’s earned $75,000. She spends that much at lunch.

Madonna seems to be beating a dead horse with “Medellin.” The single is not in the iTunes top 100 and hasn’t registered on the Spotify US charts.

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