Taylor Swift has broken a Billboard 200 chart record previously held by the late Whitney Houston.

The 'Shake It Off' hitmaker's latest LP, 'folklore', has returned to the top of the US chart, and has now surpassed the music icon's record for the most cumulative weeks at number one for a female artist.

The 30-year-old pop superstar has now spent 47 weeks at the top of the chart, beating Whitney's 46 weeks.
'Hello' hitmaker Adele is in third place, having spent 34 weeks on top.

The Beatles are the overall record holders of male and female artists, as the 'Let it Be' hitmakers spent 132 weeks at number one.

Sir Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson and more follow closely behind.
Taylor had already become the first artist ever to debut at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Hot 100 charts in the same week.

The surprise LP, which she dropped in July, hit the summit of the Billboard 200 album chart, and the lead single, 'cardigan', went on to reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100.

The album had already smashed several records, including achieving 80.6 million Spotify streams in one day - the most ever for a female artist.

And across the pond, the 'Love Story' hitmaker became the first and only female artist in the 21st Century to score five number one studio albums in the UK after 'folklore' topped the charts.

The record sold 37,060 copies in its first week in the UK, and all sales occurred online, as the coronavirus pandemic meant there had been no physical release in stores.

Meanwhile, Taylor - who is nominated for six awards at this year's Billboard Music Awards - recently admitted her fans are "the only reason" why people "care" about her music.

The 'ME!' hitmaker heaped praise on her loyal supporters - affectionately known as Swifities - as she won the Best Direction award for her music video, 'The Man', at the MTV Video Music Awards last month.

Speaking in a self-filmed acceptance speech, she said: "I really want to thank the fans because you are the only reason why the industry cares about anything that I do. And everything that you guys have done with Folklore this summer, I'm just so blown away and taken aback by your generosity to me."


Source: Bang Showbiz

​Dwayne Johnson has waded into the political battlefield by offering up his first-ever public endorsement for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris.

The Jumanji: The Next Level star revealed he has long considered himself an Independent "with centrist ideologies", and has voted for both Republican and Democratic leaders over the years.

However, the wrestler-turned-Hollywood action man, who has previously expressed an interest in running for office one day, has never officially shared his support for any candidate - until now.

Johnson, aka The Rock, made his endorsement in a video posted to social media on Sunday when he shared footage of an online chat he recently had with Biden and Harris to demonstrate why they are his pick to defeat incumbent Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence this November.

At the start of the conversation, the actor recognised his guests' political achievements, stating, "You guys are both obviously experienced to lead. You've done great things."

"Joe, you've had such an incredible career," Johnson said, complimenting Biden as former leader Barack Obama's Vice President.

"You've led in my opinion, with great compassion, and heart, and drive, but also soul," he added.
Johnson then praised California prosecutor-turned-Senator Harris as "smart and tough", adding, "In my opinion, you are a certified bada**."

During the discussion, Biden and Harris hammered home the importance of honesty in leading the country and taking responsibility. They also vowed to build a diverse administration "representative of all of America", if elected.
Johnson, who boasts 199 million Instagram followers, had previously made his feelings about Trump clear back in June when he slammed the Republican Commander-in-Chief for his lack of "compassion" amid the rise of the Black Lives Matter protests.
 
Source: Microsoft News

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who signed lucrative Netflix deal, will reportedly drop their first project on the streaming giant within months.

Royal expert Rachel Bowie believes that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will release their first Netflix project in 2021.

Quoting a source, she claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan are busy working on their first project and one of their Netflix shows will go on air as soon as 2021.

Prince Harry and Meghan stepped down as senior royals and first moved to Canada and then to the United States with their son Archie earlier this year.

Recently, the royal couple singed a multi-million deal with the Netflix to produce films and documentaries under their production company.

According to reports, Harry has signed up for a web-based filmmaking course as he aims to conquer Hollywood after scoring a multi-year Netflix deal.

A media outlet, citing source, claimed: 'Harry has been doing courses, most recently a five-day ‘creative producing lab'.
​
The Duke of Sussex reportedly intends to use his skills in documentary filmmaking and navigating truth and ethics.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex signed the production deal with Netflix to make content that would inform and "give hope" to audiences.

​The Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) is refuting reports that dancehall entertainer Moses ‘Beenie Man’ Davis has been arrested for breaching the coronavirus law.  

“He’s not in police custody,” and, “no, he wasn’t,” said Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Stephanie Lindsay, who heads the JCF’s Corporate Communications Unit.  
Several posts to the contrary have been circulating on social media. 

SPP Lindsay explained that the police last night ended a gathering Davis was hosting in honour of his late mother because the number of people there exceeded the limit allowed under the Disaster Risk Management Act.  

“He was instructed to close it off. He did comply and the fact that he complied then, there would be no need to arrest him,” Lindsay told The Gleaner.  

Following the elections, Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced that public gatherings were reduced to 15 persons, down from 20.  

There’s also an island wide curfew running from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., daily.  

The government had committed to stricter enforcement of the measures because of the surge in coronavirus cases which is now at the community transmission level.  

That means that contact tracing is almost impossible.  

Over the last 24 hours, Jamaica recorded five additional COVID-19-related deaths, pushing the national tally to 60 - 14 of which came in the last three days. 

And, with 187 confirmed cases over the same period, the overall count now stands at 4, 758, of which 3, 291 are active.  

​Source: Jamaica Cleaner 

​Grammy-winning reggae artiste Ziggy Marley on Friday released his new family album, More Family Time, a follow-up to his 2009 Grammy- and Emmy-winning album, Family Time.
To create the album, Ziggy aimed to capture the energy of his four-year-old son and put it into music form. According to his team, “The result will captivate children while also keeping their parents engaged via his signature reggae sound.”
Ziggy has a number of friends being featured on the album, including Ben Harper, Sheryl Crow, Lisa Loeb, Tom Morello, Busta Rhymes, Angelique Kidjo, Alanis Morissette, Stephen Marley, and Jamie Lee Curtis reading her new book. His children Judah, Gideon, Abraham, and Isaiah also make special appearances, along with his puppy, Romeo.
A portion of proceeds from the album will benefit Ziggy’s 501(c)3, URGE, which supports the education, social development, and overall well-being of the Chepstow Primary School and the One Love Youth Camp, both in Jamaica.
Also announced this week, Ziggy will host a concert, drive-in style, on Saturday, October 24, at the City National Grove of Anaheim. There will be two sets: the matinee will be a kid-focused set, and the evening set will be a more classic Ziggy performance. All cars, families, and attendees will be socially distanced, and the venue will follow strict COVID-19 precautions.
COMPLETE CONTROLAn eight-time Grammy winner, Ziggy Marley has released 15 albums to much critical acclaim. Now with his own label, Tuff Gong Worldwide, and publishing company, Ishti Music, Marley has complete control of his master recordings and publishing.
His early immersion into music came at age 10, when he sat in on recording sessions with his father, Bob Marley. After eight records with The Melody Makers and three Grammy Awards with such chart-topping hits as Look Who’s Dancing, Tomorrow People and Tumbling Down, he kicked off his solo career in 2003 with Dragonfly.
His first children’s album, Family Time, received the 2009 Grammy for Best Children’s Album, and he also took home a Daytime Emmy Award for I Love You Too, which shares its title with his 2012 debut children’s book. Tapping into his expansive creativity, he created the graphic novel MARIJUANAMAN and launched Ziggy Marley Organics, an innovator in GMO-free coconut oils and hemp seed snacks. As an extension of his passion for health and sustainable living, Marley published the Ziggy Marley & Family Cookbook in 2016. In May 2018, Marley released his most recent album, Rebellion Rises.

Spragga Benz is doing well these days on The Journey Chosen, which is the title of his ninth album which will be released next week. It has been exactly one year since the Franklin Town-born megastar set an almost stratospherically high bar for veteran artistes looking for an entrance into the fast-paced decade of dancehall music, with the Chiliagon which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Reggae Album charts. The internationally renowned dancehall artiste waited 10 years to release that compilation, but says he’s, “not wasting any time, not on the next one either,”. Understandably it only took so long because some of that time was for personal healing.

“Time waits on no man; so, I’m putting in the work for another project as we speak. My generation of musicians, as well as the fans, we nah really get so much of that. The ‘90s gone from the ‘90s, but we can recapture aspects of the atmosphere, be it through the writing, the topics, delivery and style, tempo of the beats, and still maintain /ill that gap for my era,” Spragga Benz told The Sunday Gleaner.

The dancehall artiste emerges with one of his most powerful albums yet, an endless expression of gratitude and complex meditation on the goings-on of the world. Spragga Benz, born Carlton Errington Grant, also opened up about coping with loss, not only the loss of his son Carlton ‘Carlyle’ Grant Jr who suffered an untimely death in 2008, but also losing touch with the world.

He isn’t trapped in sorrow or consumed by it. As a father of 10 children, he has discovered solace after despair, he shared, “Family is the essence of the production, from working with Lamar [Reynolds] who we were connected to through my son, not in no big studio, most of the work was at his home. So from there it had a whole family feel to it. They are influential in the lyrics in some way, shape or form.”

Lamar Reynolds, producer and owner of LMR Pro, expressed wanting to put out a tribute rhythm for his friend. It took them approximately one year and six months to complete the memorial track titled Never Leave, but other ideas were born which matured into the 11-track album fusing talents of the likes of Ky-Mani Marley and Wayne Wonder, longtime friends of Spragga Benz.

Minus the tear-jerking Never Leave, which intros with the sounds of Carlyle speaking and laughing and also features popular musician and producer Salaam Remi playing bass guitar, the album has a song, a style and emotions that represent for a wide scope of music lovers, but to its core targets the foundation reggae and dancehall fans.

“The process of creating this album was natural. While working on Never Leave, I got to hear other rhythms. So it was like, let me hear this and that, until we start create ideas together which turn into nine tracks from him and two tracks from Red Square Productions. The increase in tempo of the music nowadays, like life, is natural. People want to move with the new age but I nah leave out the roots, I am trying to introduce them to consistency,” he said.
“LMR Pro understood that and I am proud of him, the work he is doing as a young producer and his approach to the business.”

Speaking of the current state of the entertainment business, which for the most part is dependent on the virtual marketplace, Spragga Benz had this to say. “We just trying to adjust to the new changes, be more independent. Still there are restrictions but we must start look into what an artiste doing for themselves without a big label behind them. It weighs totally on the digital platform.”

VIRTUAL CONNECTION

​Spragga Benz’s exploration of the film industry, first with his 1999 debut in Brooklyn Babylon, where he played himself ,then again in the 2002-Jamerican crime movie Shottas, connected him to a whole other side of entertainment and propelled his career. He said, “I learned that acting is an extended music video which you do it one time this way, then do it again from another angle and then another angle.” He hasn’t played any roles recently, but says he’s received scripts and is just waiting on one to strike that feeling to make him want to be part of the production.

As for the music, he admitted it to being more challenging to connect with the audience from a virtual space.
“We just can’t connect [with the people], they’re not there. While I can stand on my own foot, with a live audience it’s much better because of the energy we feed off each other. Some songs don’t come across with the right emotion on a TV or phone screen. Me and the band was just having this conversation. So who knows? We might do a live stream, invite all the artistes and perform the album.”

Hinting a possible Grammy submission, Spragga Benz said, “Why not? I want the people them to know I am thankful for their continuing support and I am consistently trying to satisfy them. It all comes down to the committee … it’s out in the atmosphere.”


​Source : Jamaica Cleaner 

​Selena Gomez has asked Facebook to help to halt the spread of "hate, misinformation, racism and bigotry".

The 'Heart Wants What It Wants' hitmaker has shared a private note she penned to Facebook's chief executive officer and chief operating officer, where she asked the social media platform to help stop this misinformation.

Writing in a private message to chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg and chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said: "It's been a while since we sat down. We have a serious problem. Facebook and Instagram are being used to spread hate, misinformation, racism and bigotry. I am calling you both to help stop this. Please shut down groups and users focused on spreading hate speech violence and misinformation. Our future depends on it. This is an election year. We cannot afford to have misinformation about voting. There has to be fact-checking and accountability. Hope to hear back from you ASAP."

Meanwhile, Selena previously revealed she has "gained a sense of knowledge" about the world over the past few months.

The 'Lose You to Love Me' singer has been involving herself in activism work amid the Black Lives Matter movement, and recently gave her Instagram account over to Black leaders, as well as making a donation to help Black families.

And now, Selena previously revealed that spending time at home during the coronavirus pandemic has helped give her the "opportunity" to "learn a lot" about her country and the wider world, especially in relation to Black Lives Matter.
​
She said: "It's definitely the most time I've spent on my own probably since I was 16. At first it was super uncomfortable, more so because of the anxiety I was carrying because of everything that is happening. I also feel like I got the opportunity to learn a lot about my country in ways that I never have before. I feel like I've gained a sense of knowledge and a sense of feeling good about saying what I'm saying, and I feel good about what I'm standing by, and I'm not going to let other opinions conduct what I feel personally."

Source: © Bang Showbiz 

Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney has quit her role as Britain's special envoy on media freedom in protest at the country's intention to breach international law over Brexit-related legislation.

The British government has drafted a bill which it acknowledges would violate its international legal obligations and undercut parts of the divorce deal it signed before Britain formally left the European Union in January.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the bill was essential to counter "absurd" threats from Brussels but it has prompted resignations and the threat of a rebellion by lawmakers, which appears to have been averted after a compromise was reached.

"It is lamentable for the UK to be speaking of its intention to violate an international treaty signed by the Prime Minister less than a year ago," said Clooney, who is married to actor George Clooney, in a letter to foreign minister Dominic Raab.

"It threatens to embolden autocratic regimes that violate international law with devastating consequences all over the world," she wrote.

​Source: Reuters 

​Lady Gaga quarantined with a number of her young female employees.
The 'Poker Face' hitmaker was particularly worried about the staff members whose crowded living conditions put them more at risk of contracting coronavirus, so in early March, she moved a small group of them into her Hollywood Hills home.

She said: "Somebody'd go grocery shopping, the rest of us would clean the vegetables, then somebody would cook."

When they weren't working, the 34-year-old star and her houseguests spent a lot of time having deep conversations, praying, and playing boardgames.

Gaga told Billboard magazine: "I run my team like a family. I don't run it like a staff."

The '911' singer believes it is "really wrong" with people to refuse to wear masks in public as she feels it is disrespectful towards healthcare workers who have been working on the front line during the pandemic.

She said: "It's really wrong for us to go, 'I'm uncomfortable [with wearing a mask] because I can't breathe.' Give me a break. Show some respect for the people who are there for us when we dial 911."

Gaga has been a vocal supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement but she admitted she still has things to "unlearn" and believes social justice is a "lifestyle" that more and more people will commit to.

She said: "When you're born in this country, we all drink the poison that is white supremacy.

"I am in the process of learning and unlearning things I've been taught my whole life.

"Social justice is not just a literacy, it's a lifestyle," she continues. "What do I think about [posting] a black square? I think everybody has a different feeling about a black square. Do I think there's such a thing as performative activism? Yes. Do I think there's been true activism that's been very important and needed? Yes. Do I believe Black lives matter? Yes. Do I believe this is going to get louder? Yes. Do I believe it should? Yes."

Source: Bang Showbiz

​Miley Cyrus has recorded a number of new songs about her relationship with Liam Hemsworth.

The 27-year-old singer first started dating the 30-year-old actor in 2009, before tying the knot in 2018 and splitting last year and Miley's new material is set to detail their break-up.

According to The Sun newspaper's Bizarre column, unreleased track 'Win Some, Lose Some', contains the lyrics: "Last night was the nail in the coffin, Lord knows we were already dead. Look back and the memory's haunted, can't believe we did it again, yeah. Can't count all the times that I faked it, thank God for the thoughts in my head.

"You know me the best, but you hurt me the worst, my darling. I can't pretend any more."

And, in 'WTF Do I Know', she sings: "Maybe getting married just to cause a distraction.

"You wanted an apology? Not from me. I had to leave you in your own misery. So tell me, baby, am I wrong that I moved on? And I don't even miss you. Thought that it'd be you until I die, but I let go."

Although Miley is currently working on new album 'She Is Miley Cyrus', it is unclear if the Liam-inspired tracks will make the cut but she has insisted that the record will be "reflective" of who she is.

On what fans can expect from the follow-up to 2017's 'Younger Now' - Miley told French radio station NRJ: "In my [live] sets, I cover Britney Spears to Metallica, so my record will be reflective of who I am, which is just kind of all different pieces of inspiration and influence."

Source: Bang Showbiz