Free Republic

Interesting to watch them react to something NOT in English.. 😁 Brad always too serious, while Lex is bubbly, as always.

A planned collaboration between late night host Jimmy Fallon and powerful entertainment executive Tommy Mottola to launch a branded line of pasta sauces is now kaput as the entertainment mogul’s name is being discovered all over the Epstein Files, exposing his close relationship with the late financier and convicted sex offender and trafficker. Fallon and Mottola have been close friends for years, often spotted palling around New York together and frequently enjoying Italian American dishes at East Harlem mainstay Rao’s.

Gene Simmons is doubling down on the controversial comments he recently made about rap artists being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. During an appearance on the Feb. 7 edition of the LegendsNLeaders podcast, the Kiss star complained about Iron Maiden - "[who] can sell out stadiums" - being passed over for induction in favor of hip-hop artists such as Grandmaster Flash. "Ice Cube and I had a back and forth [about this}, Simmons continued. "He's a bright guy and I respect what he's done. It’s not my music. I don’t come from the ghetto. It doesn’t...

As you likely know by now, Jelly Roll has undergone a dramatic body transformation, losing nearly 300 pounds. But even though he insists he didn’t use GLP-1 drugs to help with his weight loss, some people still accuse him of not being truthful about it. Last month, Jelly Roll appeared on the cover of Men’s Health, where he spoke candidly about the speculation surrounding GLP-1 medications. He explained that he didn’t use GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic or Mounjaro to lose nearly 300 pounds, saying he instead chose to focus on confronting the emotional and psychological roots of his food...

First Lady Melania Trump stepped into Valentine's Day early with a stop at the National Institute of Health on Wednesday (2-12) and was asked by a girl who was making crafts next to her what music she listens to. A bold question to ask the First Lady, but Trump did not hesitate in her response. Mrs. Trump replied, “I listen to all kinds of music. I like Michael Jackson, I like Pavarotti, I like Tina Turner, I like Miley Cyrus,” smiling as she placed a bit of extra emphasis on Cyrus’ name. Cyrus, of course, is the daughter of country...

Yep, the entire second movement. Don't thank me. I'm a giver.

Slade drummer Don Powell has shared insight on his life-changing car accident. It was the early morning of July 4, 1973 when the rocker was severely injured in a crash near his home in Wolverhampton, England. At the time, Slade was the biggest band in Britain, having scored five No. 1 singles on the U.K. chart. Powell and his fiance were both ejected from the vehicle in the accident. She died instantly, but the drummer miraculously survived. “I've still got no idea what happened,” Powell confessed during a recent appearance on the Rockonteurs podcast. “We were both, myself and my...

The Super Bowl now plays like America’s divorce proceedingsThe country still shares one screen, but not one meaning. One side will dominate the other, or separation will harden into something more permanent.The Seattle Seahawks trampled the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX, but the postgame chatter barely touched football. Fans and pundits argued about anthems, halftime, commercials, and what the whole spectacle “said” about America.For better or worse, the Super Bowl serves as the premier civic liturgy of the American empire, a night when strangers share the same screens and offices share the same small talk. When that...

Gene Simmons is again sticking his tongue out at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for allowing hip-hop artists to snag a spot in rock’s most exclusive club. The 76-year-old KISS co-founder — who was inducted into the Cleveland shrine for rock with the band in 2014 — appeared on the “LegendsNLeaders” podcast last week, where he flipped the script on host Ben Weiss and asked which band shaped him most growing up. When the 25-year-old host revealed he gravitated toward more “hip-hop adjacent stuff” in his youth, Simmons blasted the genre and seethed that rap stars have scored...

An introduction to one of the most important songwriters of the 20th century.Antonio Carlos Jobim, better known as “Tom Jobim” in his homeland, is arguably one of the most important songwriters of the 20th century, rivaling Gershwin, Porter, McCartney & Lennon, and Wonder for sheer consistency and diversity of output. The sheer number of cover versions in circulation since the 60s keeps Jobim relevant globally among jazz and pop musicians. While Jobim will forever be associated with the Bossa Nova style he helped create alongside Vinicius de Moraes and João Gilberto, his legacy cannot be contained in one genre....

Multi award-winning film composer John Williams has created a stunning legacy that has changed the way soundtracks are thought of. We trace his genius.The term “genius” is far too often, bandied about – alongside its catchall companion, “icon.” But in the case of John Williams both words apply, while barely doing justice to the magnitude of his talent. John Williams isn’t just a soundtrack composer, he is the undisputed master of the film score. He is also a creator of contemporary classical music with a post-romantic style, and a grand conductor, pianist, and jazz buff who used to play...

New Media Victory: Kid Rock Tops Bad Bunny on iTunes Chart After Halftime Show Face-Off 5,507 WICHITA, KANSAS - APRIL 18: Kid Rock performs in concert at Intrust Bank Arena on April 18Gary Miller; Chris Graythen/Getty Images Warner Todd Huston9 Feb 20262,486 2:31 On the day after TPUSA’s “All America Halftime Show,” Kid Rock has zoomed to the #1 spot on iTunes with his rendition of “‘Til You Can’t,” knocking Bad Bunny out of the top spot despite the Puerto Rican rapper’s appearance as the star of the NFL’s Super Bowl Halftime Show. As February 9 dawned, Kid Rock’s version...

Recorded over three sessions between 1949 and 1950, Miles Davis’ ‘Birth Of The Cool’ is a landmark jazz album. The history behind the recording of the music that would ultimately become Miles Davis’ Birth Of The Cool album, released in 1957 by Capitol Records, is fascinating, complex, and the subject of some creative confusion, but there is absolutely no doubting the brilliance and the importance of this record. In 1947, Miles Davis was playing in Charlie Parker’s quintet, having replaced Dizzy Gillespie, who had left in 1945. Davis recorded with Parker for the Savoy and Dial labels, and his...

The Queens of the Stone Age frontman appears on a new episode of the podcast ‘Norah Jones Is Playing Along.’Norah Jones and Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age have shared a tender cover of Frank and Nancy Sinatra‘s “Somethin’ Stupid” for an upcoming podcast episode. On a new episode of Norah Jones Is Playing Along, the duo performed the cover of “Somethin’ Stupid,” written by C. Carson Parks and made famous by the father-daughter duet version. Homme’s appearance on the podcast will air February 10. In the latest episode of Norah Jones is Playing Along, the two...

Television bassist Fred Smith died Thursday of unspecified causes at the age of 77. The news was announced on the band's Instagram page. Jimmy Rip, who has served as Televison's guitarist since co-founder Richard Lloyd's departure in 2007, noted on his own post that Smith had fought an unspecified illness "long and hard these last few years." Smith joined Television in 1975 and appeared on all three of their studio albums, including the 1977 masterpiece Marquee Moon. Prior to that, Smith was also the founding bassist in Blondie, departing the Debbie Harry-fronted group before they began their recording career. Read...

Natasha Owens slamming the cantsingsteen.

He provided warm bass vocals on such hits as “Up, Up and Away,” “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” and “Wedding Bell Blues” and was a photographer and author as well.LaMonte McLemore, a founding member of The 5th Dimension and a longtime celebrity and sports photographer whose images graced magazines including Jet, Ebony and Harper’s Bazaar, has died. He was 90.McLemore died Tuesday of natural causes at his home in Las Vegas, a publicist announced. He suffered a stroke several years ago.With The 5th Dimension alongside Florence LaRue, Ron Townson and married couple Billy Davis Jr. and Marilyn McCoo, McLemore helped bring...

My latest song. Remember.

The lead singer and guitarist of Mark of Cain, a legendary Australian alternative rock band, has come out as a trans woman. After a lifetime of “inner conflict,” soul searching, and channeling her life as an “outsider” into her music, Josie Scott decided to cut through the noise and go “straight to the point with little or no bulls—”… all in a single social media post. “As I’ve aged, and mortality is ever closer, I’ve decided to embrace, rather than endure, who I am,” Scott explained in the Monday post. Scott says she has struggled with “gender dysphoria” since she...

The Beach Boys ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ is one of their best-loved numbers, and a highlight of their live shows since it was released.The Beach Boys’ “Fun, Fun, Fun” is one of their best-loved numbers, and a highlight of their live shows for the past 50 years. Released on February 3, 1964, it entered the Billboard Hot 100 on February 15 at No.69 and on the week of March 21, it climbed to No.5 on the charts. It was kept from climbing any higher by three Beatles singles, “She Loves You,” “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” and “Please Please...