Quantcast
Channel: Celebrity - The Huffington Post
Viewing all 15269 articles
Browse latest View live

Mark Wahlberg Set To Produce Reality Pilot About MIT Grads

0
0
It looks like Marky Mark is a fan of reality TV.

After the success of his show "Wahlburgers" on A&E, Mark Wahlberg has decided to team up with the network once again for another reality style project called "The Big Brew Theory." The show, whose title is a play on another nerd related program, follows four MIT grads and one MIT undergrad as they work to create the perfect microbrewery. Wahlberg is set to executive produce the new series.


Dan Newbie Returns With 'Game Of Thrones' Theme Song Played On Household Items

0
0
Dan Newbie can turn anything into an instrument.

He blew us away with his cover of the iconic "Super Mario Bros." music a few weeks ago. Now, Newbie has returned by popular demand with the "Game of Thrones" theme song performed on wine glasses, pans, a water jug — everything but the kitchen sink.

If you think the theme song is too complex for the improvisational use of random objects, you'd be wrong.

Steve Carell Comedy Earns TBS Pickup

0
0
Funny man and former "Office" star Steve Carrell is returning to his roots with a new show on TBS.

The network picked up Carrell and wife Nancy's new police comedy fare titled "Angie Tribeca." The show, which will star former "Parks and Recreation" cast-member Rashida Jones, centers on a group of outlandish Los Angeles detectives. Jones will play Angie Tribeca, a capable cop who's less than pleased when she's assigned a new partner.

Carrell might not be appearing in front of the camera but he is getting a few of his A-List friends to make cameos including Lisa Kudrow, Alfred Molina and Gary Cole.

See Emily Blunt & John Krasinski's New $2.6 Million Love Nest

0
0
Emily Blunt and John Krasinski are as loved up as ever, and now they have a new love nest! The adorable acting couple plunked down a cool $2.575 million for a new home in Los Angeles, expanding their real estate portfolio and their family.

Tyrion Goes On Trial In The 'Game Of Thrones' Episode 6 Preview

0
0
Tywin better not expect too much for Father's Day.

In the preview for the upcoming episode of "Game of Thrones," "The Laws of Gods and Men," Tywin Lannister presides over his son Tyrion's murder trial, and he's kind of a jerk about it. At least Tyrion's brother Jaime is trying to give him a hand. The problem is he only has one left. (Literally, we're saying he just has a left hand.)

Other takeaways include:

Varys and Oberyn checking out new furniture ...
game of thrones

Stannis and Davos having a frowning competition ...
game of thrones stannis

And Ramsay possibly having a minor shaving mishap. (That's why you gotta go with a soothing gel for sensitive skin, bro.)
game of thrones


"Game of Thrones" airs Sunday at 9:00 p.m. ET on HBO.

Arianna Talks To Oprah About What It Takes To Thrive (VIDEO)

0
0
Arianna recently sat down with Oprah for an episode of "Super Soul Sunday" that premieres this Sunday, Mother's Day. During the hour-long interview, she spoke about her new book, Thrive, the spiritual wake-up call that shifted her perception of success, motherhood, and the dreams she willingly gave up.

In the above clip from the episode, Arianna talks about her personal assessment of her goals, sharing that she conducted a critical "life audit" more than two decades ago.

"I did a life audit when I was 40," Arianna, now 63, tells Oprah. "I just looked through all the projects that I thought I was going to do -- including becoming a good skier, learning to cook, learning German... -- and realized I'm never going to do that. I'm never going to become a good skier. So, I actually gave them up."

Abandoning these life goals wasn't a negative experience for Arianna. "I realized how liberating it is to complete a project by dropping it, and then be able to focus on the things that I'm really going to put my energy into --what really matters to me," she says.

Oprah, too, has seen how this shift in priorities can be life-affirming. "So many people who respond to us… have seen themselves in that whirlwind of living your life based on what other people wanted in the first place," she says. "And then you realize, 'But is that really what I want? Why am I striving, striving, striving for that?'"

"Yes," Arianna says. "Are we living our dream? Or are we living somebody else's dream? Or what society considers valuable?"

Arianna's interview airs on "Super Soul Sunday" on OWN this Sunday, May 11, at 11 a.m. ET, when it also streams worldwide on Oprah.com, Facebook.com/owntv and Facebook.com/supersoulsunday.

John Leguizamo Explains Why People Need To Reach Out To Latinos (VIDEO)

0
0
John Leguizamo knows all about the mojo.

The Colombian-born actor stars in Jon Favreau’s latest indie comedy “Chef” as Martin, a witty and coolheaded Cuban cook. Recently, Leguizamo sat down with The Huffington Post to talk about what it was like to bring a whole lot of Latin flavor to a film that was all about, well, Latin flavor.

With plenty of delectable scenes for food porn addicts, “Chef” gives audiences a glimpse into the culinary world. In the film, Chef Carl Casper must find a way to reignite his creative spark after he is suddenly forced to quit his job at a prominent Los Angeles restaurant.

As Carl takes a leap to reconnect with his roots, Martin (Leguizamo) jumps in behind him. The actor said he enjoyed giving Favreau a hand both on and off the screen.

“It was great teaching Jon a lot of Spanish words, like Mojo is a Spanish word,” Leguizamo told HuffPost. “Nobody knows that but mojo is like Cuban for [a] special magic sauce, so that’s why people get their mojo on.”

In one scene, Martin also gives Carl a hand connecting with some Latino workers by breaking out some Spanish. The “Ghetto Klown” star explained why it’s so important that Non-Latinos find a way to connect with the Hispanic community.

(Check Out The Full Interview Above)

While “Chef” focuses on a character’s literal journey to reconnect with his creativity and his son, the film also spotlights the power of social media.

“I only Twitter, I instagram every blue moon, I don’t really Facebook that much but Twitter I like,” Leguizamo said when asked about his online habits. “I just think it’s an important dissemination of intellectual knowledge or you can start political movements, social movements. I think it’s a really powerful instrument. And I like that Jon in the movie plays this sort of paleolithic [guy] in social media, until he gets educated by his son and then all of a sudden he doesn’t know how dangerous it is and it all goes awry.”

“Chef” opens in theaters nationwide on May 9.

Storytelling to Save the Planet

0
0
The art of storytelling is at our core. It's the lifeblood of how we communicate and how we decide what deserves our attention and what we are content to ignore as a passing fad. We've accomplished storytelling on the silver screen and the latest Internet meme, but is the art of storytelling dead when it comes to complicated, politically charged issues like our environment and the need for swift action to combat climate change?

On April 13, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) declared, yet again, that we are in crisis -- decades of political inefficiency paired with overwhelming acceleration of greenhouse gas emissions are putting us on a crash course with Mother Nature. According to the IPCC, the beacon of hope is that we've got 15 years to change course. One and a half decades to change the way we live, change the way we do business and change the way we think about the impact of growth.

In 2007, Al Gore and the IPCC won the Nobel Peace Prize for their report calling attention to the climate problem. While more countries have committed to climate plans amidst growing political pressure, we aren't much better off than we were seven years ago. Carbon dioxide levels are rising almost twice as fast in the first decade of this century as in last three decades of the 20th century. With developing countries favoring environmentally unsound manufacturing and economic powerhouse countries making minimal cuts to astronomic emission levels, it appears that while highly regarded, these reports aren't doing enough.

What are these reports missing? Is it that we don't believe them, or is it that we don't see enough examples of everyday citizenry taking action to inspire real change?

As an actor and filmmaker, storytelling is what I do. For more than a decade I've worked with the Goldman Environmental Prize to narrate documentary shorts about grassroots activists putting everything on the line to protect the environment. From a mother in New York who battled with the national government to establish superfund cleanup sites after discovering her entire community of Love Canal was built on a toxic waste dump to an Iraqi ex-pat establishing the Mesopotamian Marshlands, the original Garden of Eden, as Iraq's first and only national park, these stories of everyday people's successes are critical to pushing global citizens to take the same kind of action.

As I read the IPCC report, with its focus on manufacturing's intrinsic relationship to climate change, I am reminded of Ma Jun, a former Chinese journalist turned environmental watchdog who founded the not-for-profit Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs with the aim of cleaning up the air and water of a country that's responsible for 25 percent of global carbon emissions. Through leveraging the pollution mapping power of the Internet and tapping China's younger generation as a force for environmental change, Ma Jun successfully worked with both the technology and textile industries in China to clean up their supply chains with the goal of reducing harmful toxins in both the air and water.

I am reminded of Kimberly Wasserman, a community organizer and young mother whose son had his first major asthma attack at just 3-months-old, triggered by pollution from two of the oldest and dirtiest coal plants in the nation. Recognizing the disproportionate health problems plaguing her neighborhood of Little Village -- a low-income, predominantly Mexican-American community on the southwest side of Chicago -- Kimberly went on to unite local residents through a door-to-door grassroots movement, and, after a 15 year battle, succeeded in shutting down the plants permanently.

Kimberly Wasserman says, "There is no greater threat than a mom who is mad." We should all be mad that we don't see adequate action to address climate change.

Now is the time to reframe the conversation by pairing scary statistics with inspiring stories of environmental activism. Not only must media, big business and governments pay more attention to these stories -- we all need to if we are to truly change course.

We may not all be Kimberly Wasserman and Ma Jun, but through telling their stories, and those of thousands of others like them, we can turn the tide on inaction and become part of the solution instead of the problem. We've got 15 years.

Sofia Coppola's 'Little Mermaid' Parody Actually Looks Like A Movie We'd Watch

0
0
Sofia Coppola's version of "A Little Mermaid" is still a long way from theaters, but Funny or Die has already whet our appetite with its spot-on parody of the unmade film. AnnaSophia Robb plays Ariel, obsessed with her shell-shaped smart phone and Prince Eric (Evan Peters) who floats around in a pool with a crown and Ray Bans, and take cues from classic Coppola aesthetic (see "The Bling Ring," "Marie Antoinette" and "Lost in Translation"). They get drunk. They do karaoke. They smoke cigarettes under water. To be honest, it's actually a movie we'd pay money to see.

Fox Cancels 'Enlisted' And The Internet Freaks Out

0
0
Wednesday, May 7, Fox went on a cancellation bloodbath that would even make "Game of Thrones" be like, "Damn." Among the list of casualties was the cult favorite "Enlisted."

Though the military comedy received low ratings in its Friday night time slot, it was one of Fox's best reviewed freshman series and had built a passionate following, thanks in part to DVR viewers, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Fox probably didn't anticipate the passionate reactions from the show's fans.

Shortly after the announcement, Twitter exploded:
















Many of the tweeters could only compare their sadness to that of Randy's (Parker Young) when he tried to recite the plot of "Toy Story 3" without crying (an almost impossible task). The episode featuring the emotional scene, "Randy Get Your Gun," is still available to watch on Fox.com, for the time being.

Other shows getting the axe included “Surviving Jack,” “Dads” and "Rake," according to Variety. Fox also decided not to move forward with comedy pilots for "No Place Like Home," "Fatrick" and "Dead Boss."

Jeez, just invite us all to a Red Wedding next time, Fox. At least that'll be less painful.

Jason Priestley Sounds Off On Broken Friendship With Brad Pitt

0
0
Before "90210" and "Thelma & Louise," Jason Priestley and Brad Pitt were just two unknowns waiting for their big break. Better yet, the two soon-to-be teenage heartthrobs were actually friends.

But once fame came a-knocking for Priestley and Pitt, their friendship faced a challenge.

"Our careers went in such different directions that we sort of lost touch with each other," Priestley told HuffPost Live's Caitlyn Becker in an interview on Thursday, May 8. "Brad went off and was making movies all over the world, and I was sort of stuck in one place making a TV show, and it was back in the days before computers."

"It kind of tore apart our whole group of friends that we had," he continued. "The fact that the two of us went off and got strangely famous -- we had a pretty good group of friends and all of a sudden we all sort of dissipated, and it was sad."

"We were all struggling and all sort of messing around in Hollywood," Priestley said. "Those were really fun days, and I think, ya know, those friendships that we all formed and those times that we all had are times that I look back on fondly."

Watch Jason Priestley's full interview with HuffPost Live:

How 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Gave Reality TV A Much-Needed Makeover

0
0
Middlebrow is a recap of the week in entertainment, celebrity and television news that provides a comprehensive look at the state of pop culture. From the rock bottom to highfalutin, Middlebrow is your accessible guidebook to the world of entertainment. Sign up to receive it in your inbox here.

mid

"RuPaul's Drag Race" has had its fair share of controversy lately, but over the course of its six-season run, the show has managed to shift the mainstream perception of drag culture while also inverting the presiding structure of reality television. Where other contest-based shows are guided by a single matrix -- being the best model, or singer, or toddler in a tiara -- RuPaul judges drag queens in holistic manner. To take home the title, a contestant must have superior stage presence, proper blush contouring and the ability to conceptualize themed couture. They also need to be a good person.

1120ru5

On the show, being a "good person" is best understood as having "charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent," and understanding that "if you can’t love yourself, how in the hell are you gonna love somebody else?” Those are catchphrases, but also the presiding rubric by which Ru evaluates drag queens as they pass through each week's challenges. There are different skills that allow queens to move ahead, but ultimately to win, one must be able to function as a role model, not just for fledgling queens, but for anyone who needs a little help embracing their true self.

While it's easy to write off "Drag Race" as niche programming, its message extends far beyond a main stage judged by Michelle Visage and her breast plate. Being a drag queen means facing discrimination (simply by virtue of the stigmatization of the sub-culture). So, instead of relying on the trite, producer-driven conflict of the more basic iterations of reality television, "Drag Race" formulates the competition as a model for real-world harassment. For example, in "reading" sessions, the queens tear into each other with one-liners, but the purpose is not so much being catty as building up a resistance for the inevitable discrimination they'll face outside of the show.

1120ru3

The emphasis on the morality of self-esteem has always been embedded within "Drag Race," but it is especially clear this season through the juxtaposition of Bianca Del Rio and Courtney Act. The latter has Grace-Kelly good looks and a voice that earned her a spot on "Australian Idol." On a purely skill-based show, she'd be the standout competitor, but remains defeated by a personality which falls as flat as her abs. Then we have Bianca, who can sew and has whip-quick wit, but also brings a specific kindness to each episode. She is unafraid to admit to her weakness and consistently steps up to help other queens, even when the competition is playing to her strengths. Her humanity doesn't just make Bianca a fan favorite, it's also crucial to the show's narrative -- and it will surely be a major aspect of what leads her to victory in the finale.

The formulation for any other contest-based show demands its cast to prove their skills with almost a complete disregard for the competitor as an individual. Those cloying scenes of people crying and breaking down because shit's hard or they miss their family are the exception; at its core, reality television is about vitriolic pursuit of victory (whilst declaring "I didn't come here to make friends."). It's not that "RuPaul's Drag Race" centralizes on holding hands and singing an '80s dance version of "Kumbaya," but "making friends" certainly doesn’t negate the winning. At the end of the day, beneath all the glitter and prestige of showmanship is a message about finding strength in vulnerability, and understanding that (as Ru once put it) "loving yourself is a daily practice." That's especially important to understand for those who don't adhere to society's prescribed gender norms ... but couldn't everybody learn to use a little more self love?

Follow Lauren Duca on Twitter: @laurenduca

James Franco Will Apparently Play Tommy Wiseau In That Movie About 'The Room'

0
0
Hi, doggy. According to Seth Rogen, James Franco will play Tommy Wiseau in an adaptation of "The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside 'The Room,'" Greg Sestero's memoir about co-starring with Wiseau in "The Room." News that Franco would make a film on Sestero's book was first reported in February of this year.

"Tommy Wiseau is undoubtedly a 'character,' a mysterious, self-made man whose origins and age are unknown, who somehow has enough money to spend $6 million dollars making and promoting his own film, buying all the equipment in the process," Franco wrote in a review of "The Disaster Artist" for VICE last year. "He looks like he is from Bram Stoker's Transylvania: ageless, muscled, sweet, and scary; he is part vampire, part Hollywood dreamer, part gangster, part Ed Wood, and super lonely."

In speaking with radio hosts Opie and Anthony, Rogen agreed that the film will mine dark territory amid the laughs.

"What's interesting is [Wiseau] had to restructure his thoughts on it to some degree. Because he wants the acclaim and attention but all that’s associated with somewhat acknowledging that it sucks shit," Rogen said (via The Film Stage). "So I think he's kind of in a weird position where he goes to the Q&A's and introduces the screenings and I think now he kind of pretends, 'Oh, it's a dark comedy' or something like that. But it's so clear that he’s wounded and torn. Which is interesting also -- a guy who has to go around and perpetuate something that's being received for all the wrong reasons, basically."

Anticipation for this film is tearing us apart (Lisa), but let's just assume that the tireless Franco can put something together in the near future. That's the idea, at least.

For more on "The Disaster Artist," head to The Film Stage.

Dolly Parton On Lesbian Rumors, LGBT Fans And Her Drag Queen Name

0
0
Dolly Parton addresses those long-standing lesbian rumors as well as her affection for her gay fans in a new interview with PrideSource's Chris Azzopardi.

The 68-year-old country music legend, who is currently promoting her new album, "Blue Smoke," told Azzopardi, "I do believe that I have a lot of gay fans because I think they do accept me as I am -- the differences in me -- and I think they know that I see that and love that in everybody else."

Calling herself non-judgmental, "loving" and "accepting," she added, "I try to see the good in everybody and I don't care who people are as long as they're themselves, whatever that is."

Of the country music world's reputation as being less-than-hospitable toward the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, she said, "There's just been so much made of [gay rights] in the last two or three years and it's been brought to the front so people can really see it and be like, 'Yeah, I guess there are a lot more gay people than we ever knew! I have a better understanding of it now. I know that these people are for real.' I think they're getting that now."

The icon again dismisses tabloid speculation over the nature of her relationship with longtime gal pal Judy Ogle as "just a precious friendship," noting, "I am not gay, but if I were I would be the first one running out of the closet."

And she capped off the interview by revealing what her drag name would be: "P. Titty ... like P. Diddy!"

Check out Azzopardi's full interview with Parton here.



'Penny Dreadful' Review: This Victorian Horror Show Is A Winner

0
0
"Penny Dreadful" is, at its heart, about sadness.

Wait, what? Isn't this a Victorian horror series with monsters, severed limbs and the occasional wall painted in blood? Isn't this a Showtime drama, complete with very attractive writhing bodies?

Well, yes, but the good news is that all of those things are used to hunt more elusive and emotional quarry. "Penny Dreadful" energetically embraces many of the trappings of Victorian melodrama and horror, but the show is character-driven in the ways that matter. Creator John Logan, a well-known film writer who penned the most recent entry in the Bond franchise, uses the conventions of the genre to make the audience feel the pain, the loneliness and the fiery obsessions of its main characters, all of whom make a strong impressions in the show's first two episodes. "Penny Dreadful's" gory moments are deployed strategically, and the adjective that best describes this show is not "bloody" but "soulful."

But there is blood, make no mistake. Horror's not my home genre; if a show's going to have menacing tentacles and nefarious plots, I prefer those things have intergalactic origins. I'm a bit of a scaredy cat when it comes to creepy fare, which is why television's determination to ensure that I never sleep again -- via "The Following," "American Horror Story," "Hannibal" and so on -- is a little troubling. I understand why these shows exist -- more than ever, TV networks need their dramas to make a splash, and buckets of severed body parts will do that -- and it's clear the trend toward gore shows no sign of letting up.

The bad news is, the trend occasionally throws up (and I use that term advisedly) derivative, tedious, plodding fare like "Rosemary's Baby," the NBC remake that airs Sunday and provides an object lesson in how to waste a good premise and a decent cast. The good news is, the better shows have made it easy to accept TV's turn toward the extreme. In well-executed horror fare, everything that occurs onscreen is underpinned by understandable motivations and emotional complexity (elements "The Following" has never bothered with, of course). When ambitious horror programs are at the top of their game -- i.e., "Hannibal," the second season of "American Horror Story," now "Penny Dreadful" -- they create atmospheres of dread and suspense mixed with bittersweet grief and spiky anger. The good shows aren't about toting up the biggest body count; they try to convey a certain kind of psychological intensity and evoke indescribable feelings.

With efficiency and economy, "Penny Dreadful" sketches out the lives of Vanessa Ives (Eva Green) and Sir Malcolm Murray (Timothy Dalton), two London residents who keep up a proper and prosperous front while investigating the city's dark and terrifying underworld. This late-Victorian pair is not in a romantic relationship; there's something much more complicated going on between them, and I look forward to finding out more about what unites them. (Throughout the first two hours, Logan generally makes wise choices about what to reveal and what to hold back.)

Murray and Ives come across a laconic American, Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett), whose sharp-shooting skills they have use for, and of course Chandler has secrets of his own. In the course of his wanderings through London, Chandler meets a scrappy young woman played by Billie Piper, and one inexplicable thing about the show is that Piper is forced to employ an Irish accent. It seems unnecessary and her dodgy attempt at the accent detracts from Piper's natural presence and welcome energy. Piper's character, Brona Croft, encounters a character whose presence reveals "Penny Dreadful's" wide-ranging literary ambitions, and I'm not quite sure he's necessary to the proceedings, but I'll reserve judgment until I see more of the eight-part series.

All that said, it's mostly Green and Dalton's show in the early going, and they do outstanding work in the first two episodes. Both actors have chemistry to burn, and though Dalton has the less showy part, it's a joy to behold the way he skillfully underplays a few key moments of revelation. Green's role is more sensual and mysterious; her eyes vibrate with some kind of frightening knowledge, but the character gives little away. If you have doubts about the show, I'd recommend sticking with it through the second episode, in which Green has a showcase scene that was executed with impressive flair by the actress and director J.A. Bayona.

Another story line involving a young acquaintance of the lead duo mixes fear, pain and loss in a beautifully evocative way, and it convinced me that "Penny Dreadful's" interests lie not in shocking but in evoking far more complex and even delicate emotions. This is one of those times you're best off knowing very little about a show before you sit down to watch it (seriously, don't even look at a cast list until you've seen the first two installments). By the way, you can check out the pilot any time: It's available online, though you owe it to the show's exceptional set decorators and production designers to watch it in HD on a big screen, if you can. The London of "Penny Dreadful" is a lush treat for the eyes (even that one creepy scene I wish I could forget).

One of my favorite books about the Victorian era is Thomas Boyle's "Black Swine in the Sewers of Hampstead," an unforgettable title that really says it all. Boyle's book recounts the Victorians' obsessions with lurid crimes, which the lively London newspapers of the era gleefully recounted. The book also delineates the rise of "Sensation" novelists like Wilkie Collins and Mary Elizabeth Braddon, whose hit book "Lady Audley's Secret" told the tale of a former governess turned murderous wife. As the show's press notes point out, many popular Victorian novels started out as serialized magazine stories, and it's not a stretch to say that those tales and the long-running "penny dreadful" publications of the era were akin to the hit TV shows of their time.

Just as "The Walking Dead," "Breaking Bad" and "Scandal" provide a window into our fears about annihilation, greed and the consequences of venal ambition, the Victorians used sensational literature, sagas about wayward women and monstrous tales of excess to process their fears about modernization, industrialization and a society that was changing in terrifying and exciting ways. In the early going, "Penny Dreadful" does a fine job of capturing that social and personal unease.

It's also tinged with compassion, pain and an energetic sense of discovery. Even if you're not a horror fan, you may well get sucked into its maw.

"Penny Dreadful" debuts 10 p.m. ET Sunday on Showtime. Part 1 of "Rosemary's Baby" airs 9 p.m. ET Sunday on NBC.

Ryan McGee and I talk about "Penny Dreadful," "Rosemary's Baby," "Sleepy Hollow" news and "Enlisted's" cancellation in the latest Talking TV podcast, which is here, on iTunes and below.




Angelina Jolie And Brad Pitt At Maleficent Event In London

0
0
Angelina Jolie channeled her Maleficient character in a dramatic black gown at a special event for the film in London on Thursday. She was joined at Kensington Palace by Brad Pitt and their son Maddox, who brought a friend along for the fun. The reception, which featured costumes and props from the movie, was held to benefit the Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Blake McIver, 'Little Rascals' Star, Releases 'It Gets Better' Music Video

0
0
Late last year we brought you the news that your favorite child star from "The Little Rascals" and "Full House" had become a full-fledged hottie who worked as a go-go boy in Los Angeles.

Having also branched out into music, Blake McIver is back with an anti-bullying video titled "It Gets Better," similar in tone to the famous campaign of the same name.

"I wrote this song two years ago," McIver notes in the video description. "I had hoped that by now it would be terribly out of date and irrelevant. Sadly it is not."

He added, "I want to dedicate this video to those who are living with hopelessness. We've already lost too many to the darkness, to the hate, and to the closed-mindedness. Although it doesn't always seem it, love is more powerful than hate. Remember, you are a miracle in spite of what they say."

Check out the video above, and head here to see another video released by McIver last November titled "Wish I Didn't Need You."



(h/t Queerty)

Erykah Badu & Ledisi Share Beauty Advice From Their Mothers At 'Essence' Dinner

0
0
This Wednesday, Essence magazine celebrated two of its May 2014 cover girls -- neo-soul visionary Erykah Badu and eight-time Grammy nominee Ledisi -- with an intimate event in New York City called "Journey To Beautiful."

Beyond the superstar guests of honor, the dinner and panel discussion brought together a select group of fashion and beauty editors, insiders and notables -- among them Mikki Taylor, Alexis Stoudemire, Tai Beauchamp, Demetria Lucas and "Orange Is the New Black" actress Danielle Brooks, to name a few. And while the theme of the event might suggest that Badu and Ledisi would be dishing on their must-have makeup products and skin care regimens, there was a deeper message being shared -- the importance of inner beauty.

Pamela Edwards-Christiani, Essence's beauty and style director, led the evening's discussion, asking the songstresses to open up about their beauty inspirations and how they learned to embrace their own idea of beauty.

And the ladies had a lot of amazing wisdom to share, from something as simple as Ledisi thinking about her great-aunt's red shoes to Badu's declaration that "beauty is your smile and your smell -- but in order to be smiling, you have to be smiling on the inside."

With Mother's Day coming up this Sunday, we took the opportunity to chat with the ladies about what beauty advice they got from their moms.

"My mother told me I was the best. She told me I was the best when I was about 8 years old, and that was a very powerful message," Badu, now 43, told The Huffington Post. "And I've used that message all my life. I believed her." Now, she said, she imparts the same missive of self-love to her daughters Puma, 9, and Mars, 5.

With Puma in particular, since she's a bit older, Badu says, "I just urge her to watch me and she will learn something." However, leading by example doesn't always cure bullies and the actions of others attempting to break that self-esteem. During a recent parent-teacher conference, Puma's teacher told Badu that some of Puma's classmates were being mean to her. Although concerned at first, Badu learned that Puma wasn't allowing the taunts of her classmates to bother her -- a fact that brings her mom a lot of pride.

"I told the teacher to continue to let [Puma] know that what those girls think is none of her business, and to let her keep moving," Badu said.

As for Ledisi, 42, the neo-soul artist has dealt with her detractors and looked to her mom for encouragement.

"My mom always said to me, 'Be yourself. No matter where you go, always be you and be honest with yourself about who you are. And be happy. Always remember to be happy. And if someone tells you you're not pretty, then call me,'" Ledisi told HuffPost.

In fact, the singer's career-making hit "Alright" was the result of a heart-to-heart she had with her mother.

"I had a conversation with my mom, and I said 'Mom, I'm going through some things and I want to quit the music business. I’m not fitting in,'" Ledisi told HuffPost. But the singer's mother assured her that, though life might be tough at the moment, everything would be "alright."

Here's a look at Badu and Ledisi and a few more pics from Essence's "Journey To Beautiful" event.

18 Celebrity College Majors That Delight Us

0
0
Contrary to popular belief, not all celebrities knew they were destined for stardom. Sure, many have a predisposition to theatrics, but it's not like they were always preparing for their big breaks. Many of our favorite A-listers came to acting after giving more traditional professions a try — or at least more traditional college majors.

Andrew Garfield On Love Emma Stone: 'She's Terrifyingly Amazing'

0
0
Exclusive! Andrew Garfield talks life in and out of the Spandex.

Andrew Garfield wasn't always a sex symbol. "I was a skinny kid. But I'm here to tell all the other guys that skinny is okay. You can still be a pretty good rugby player. And you can still be Spider-Man."
Viewing all 15269 articles
Browse latest View live




Latest Images