Seattle-based rapper Grieves has an intriguing sound that’s been described as “thoughtful,” “revealing,” and “a musically-inclined brand of independent hip-hop” Now, you know me, I don’t usually give these blue-eyed rappers the time of day, but something about this song has gotten into my head. I like it. I like the instrumental hook and the subject matter (he sings about being grumpy and wanting to be left alone).
He tells 2DopeBoyz about the song’s lyrics: “‘Recluse’ is a song that stems from these crazy-ass hangovers I get. The older I get, the worse they become. They shouldn’t have made whiskey taste so good.”
I hear ya, babe. I’ve been there. We all have. Listen to it below. Give it a couple of minutes – at least until the chorus – I promise, it grows on you. (And that’s a killer bridge at 2:20 – WOW).
“The bad thoughts and the whiskey are better company than bullshit. So just leave it and go.”
What an afternoon! What a Transformation! You’re going to ABSOLUTELY FALL IN LOVE with makeup magician NoJustHenry, he’s one of the most interesting people we’ve ever had on Transformations. I kid you not. Henry and I chat about life – his life, specifically– and shit gets real. You’re going to be hanging on the edge of your seat. And you should see the stuff that ended on the cutting room floor! Why, this episode could have run TWO HOURS and there’d still be stories left untold. The final look is sort of a tremulous fairy emerging from the skull of a very glamorous cyborg. Iloveit.
“Sometimes I see faces of blank fear when I walk by … if these fucking people want to give me some power — if they see me as some sea witch with penis tentacles that are always prodding and poking and seeking to convert the muggles — well, here she comes!”- Perfume Genius
Raja and Raven are back to TOOT and BOOT RuPaul’s Drag Race alumni’s social media images! In this episode they TOOT and BOOT photos of Madame LaQueer, Tammie Brown, Sonique, Coco Montrese, Morgan McMichaels, Detox, and super fan Carlo Jaconelli!
Raven and Raja TOOT and BOOT the fashions of the season 6 queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race and on the red carpet of RuPaul’s Drag Race Reunitedon the last episode of Fashion Photo RuView! And we have a winner!
Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT the red carpet looks of past queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race at the RuPaul’s Drag Race: Reunited!
Raven and guest host Tatianna TOOT and BOOT the looks of the final four queens in episode 12! Watch after the jump!
In the new episode of Fashion Photo RuView, Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT “Glitter Ball” from the main stage of this week’s episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race!
In the new episode of Fashion Photo RuView, Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT the Animal Kingdom Couture on the main stage of this week’s episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race!
Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT the black and white runway looks from episode 7 of RuPaul’s Drag Race!
Jujubee fills in for Raja on this episode of Fashion Photo RuView! Rujubee are reunited as they TOOT and BOOT the runway looks from episode eight of RuPaul’s Drag Race!
Raja and Raven really TOOT and BOOT the runway looks from episode six of RuPaul’s Drag Race on this episode of Fashion Photo RuView!
Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT the runway looks from episode five of RuPaul’s Drag Race on this episode of Fashion Photo RuView!
Out of all the RuPaul inspired looks, who do you TOOT and BOOT from this week’s episode?
Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT the runway looks from episode four of RuPaul’s Drag Race on this episode of Fashion Photo RuView!
Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT the runway looks from episode three of RuPaul’s Drag Race on this episode of Fashion Photo RuView!
Raja and Raven TOOT and BOOT the Queens looks from the second episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 6!
Which looks is your top TOOT from this episode?
It’s the premiere episode of RuPaul’s Drag RaceFashion Photo RuView with Raja and Raven! The two RuPaul’s Drag Race alums critique the runway fashion from this season of the RuPaul’s Drag Race mainstage.
Will they TOOT or BOOT the Queens outfits from the runway? Watch now and find out! New episodes every Wednesdays on WOWPresents!
Alyssa Edwards tweeted that she will be on an upcoming episode of Transformations with James St. James! YES GAWD! Click over to see what she transforms him into.Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view.
A comprehensive (and absolutely hysterical) list of songs to help make dusting time fun time, from one of our favorite wowlebrities David Munk (Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys) via his blog Stargayzing.
Writes David:
I would have liked to call this piece “A Gay Man’s Guide to the 10 Best Songs to Listen to While Doing Housework,” but since it is very hard to hear music over a vacuum cleaner, I have created this list to accompany the most quiet of household tasks, the dreary, dreaded, dolorous and thoroughly disagreeable removal of dust. Intuitively a gay man understands that to dust well requires not only the right tunes, but a musical approach to the physical task itself. A short list of dusting moves any gay house cleaner worth his salt must know, would include the theatrical swipe, the broad lunge, the jab, the Tinkerbell (jumping to reach a high object whilst fluttering your dusting sceptor of choice), the around-the world and, perhaps the best-loved of all, the I can see myself. Proper gay dusting attire will be addressed in subequent installments.
Regarding housework repertoire, a good dusting song for a gay man should be rousing, anthemic, or highly dramatic and be both musically and lyrically motivating within the context of housework. A successful selection can be uptempo or a ballad but in either case should distract from the onorous work at hand while simultaneously transporting the duster’s imagination someplace else. This special destination—this someplace else—is, of course, highly personal. For me, it is either to a five star hotel in an exotic locale or, even better, to my own imaginary urban aerie where I have staff of people to supervise. In either of these exalted imaginary places, the only thing required of me would be some advance straightening to allow the cleaner access to surfaces or, even better, some casual pointing (as in, I think you missed a spot, or make sure you move the lamp—don’t just dust around it), while I catch up on the phone with an old friend.
Here then, is the first Stargayzing list of songs that will make your dusting responsibilities as effortless and light as a cloud of Febreze wafting across your California King. From my home to yours—with love.
1. “Holding Out for a Hero” Bonnie Tyler
Oh the ’80s were so great for this kind of biblical, sonic, schmaltz. Though any Jim Steinman production is great for housework—one could easily make a strong argument for any of his work with Meatloaf, Celine Dion, or even Air Supply—I opted to lead with what may, in fact, be his most bombastic record ever, Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero.” If you are at all familiar with Steinman’s approach, you know that this is not a small statement. Mr. Steinman was fortunate enough to have his record of “Holding Out for a Hero” included on the Footloose soundtrack, which ensured a major payday for him and the song’s co-writer, the estimable Dean Pitchford (who also co-wrote the film’s title song, as well as Deniece Williams’ “Let’s Hear it for the Boy.”)
“Holding Out for a Hero” is so over-the-top that when it came time to shoot the video, it was, apparently, determined that the only visual capable of supporting the operatic intensity of Steinman’s studio wizardry was to put the Welsh songbird on top of the Grand Canyon. The resulting clip conjurs Clash of the Titan-level drama; one half expects Zeus to reach down from the heavens to deposit a hero at Bonnie’s feet. It is hard to think of another record in any genre released since 1984 that comes close to matching “Holding Out for a Hero” for turbo-charged Sturm und Drang. It remains for me, the crack cocaine of diva pop.
I recommend this song for dusting the highest peaks of your home: tops of bookshelves, on top of the refrigerator, or the tippy top of your closets—the places only goddesses like you and Bonnie Tyler can hope to reach. Bonnie needed a helicopter to reach her royal perch, but you need only need Stargayzing to watch.
2. “The Auctioneer” by Leroy Van Dyke
I recommend keeping the housework sound bed lively by pulling from many genres. Toward that end we have one of my favorite country tunes, “The Auctioneer.” The LeRoy Van Dyke and Buddy Black composition is certainly one of the catchiest ditties of the 1950s. Missouri native Van Dyke wrote the song while stationed in Korea and, upon his return home, entered it in a contest that led to a record deal with Dot Records. Van Dyke has had a long country music career, in fact, he’s still alive.
You’ll be living for this earworm and the hertoefore unknown regional qualities it will bring forth in your dusting. Do not be surprised if you begin to square dance, even if you have never square danced before, or spontaneously begin to bid on your own dusty knick knacks. The response frequently begins with a slight, insistent up and down shoulder move and can quickly spread throughout the body. Don’t be alarmed: this is all a normal response to “The Auctioneer.” Just remember: keep dusting, you’re not really at an auction and most of your crap has no value to anyone but you.
#3. “Working Girl (For the)” Melissa Manchester
I have written extensively about “Working Girl (For the)” on Stargayzing in the past—in fact, it got an entire blog piece writen about it—but when it comes to my regard for the song, one just can’t say too much. Culled from the more linear-titled album For the Working Girl, this Melissa Manchester/Bernie Taupin song was meant to be an everywoman anthem, a sort of “I Am Woman” for its own time. There had even been talk of a film to be spun off from the song’s narrative and produced by Taupin’s production company.
Sadly, none of that came to pass. Even worse, the song wasn’t even released as a single. What was label head Clive Davis thinking? Maybe Arista got cold feet and lost its appetite for working a feminist anthem with a shit load of vibrato at radio. Or maybe the promotion department struggled with what is certainly one of Taupin’s worst lines ever: “a nest eggs a day dream, that never gets laid.” Whatever the reasons, I’m still sad about what happened so I like to talk about it once in a while; it’s cathartic. I listen to the song regularly—probably once a week—but it never makes me happier than when while I’m doing work around the house. Try it and you’ll see. Taupin’s lyric, notwithstanding the line about the nest egg, is perfectly paired with Manchester’s passionate, theatrical performance. I guarantee you will identify with every put upon occupation Melissa names as you clean your home.
#4. “This Is My Life (La Vita)” Shirley Bassey
There is nothing like adding a dollop of defiance to your ballads to keep the dusting on track. Dame Shirley Bassey’s 1968 lung-busting anthem is just the song to do it. Never known for her restraint, here Miss Bassey really let’s it rip and the seismic result is one of her signature tunes. If you don’t know it, you’re in for a treat. If you do know the song but haven’t heard it in a while, it will feel like you’ve run into an old friend that you had mixed feelings about; though charismatic, you find this old friend loud, unduly attention-seeking and forever mired in her anger issues dressed up as self-actualization. I’m sure you know the type.
A word of warning: absolutely do not work with anything fragile while listening to Miss Brassey, as the sheer power of her voice and depths of her desperation to, you know, grow, are likely to summon forth your own anger issues. A safe bet is to work on wood objects for the 3:17 seconds it takes the singer to get it out of her system.
#5. “Bortsch Riders In the Sky” Micket Katz
Mickey Katz was a trailblazer. In the years after WWII he became famous as a Yiddish musician and comic who enjoyed a great deal of crossover success. First as a member of Spike Jones and His City Slickers and then on his own, Katz released many successful LPs. Though his music bore a clear influence of both jazz and Klezmer, Katz is best remembered today for his parody records. One of my favorites is his “Borscht Riders in the Sky,” a parody of the 1948 country standard “Ghost Riders in the Sky.” For me what makes Katz so impressive, beyond the inate likability and musciality of his records, is how willing he was to make his ethnicity the focus of his work at time when so many performers were circumspect about their Jewishness. In addition to his great records, Katz has also left us the familial legacy of his son, the legendary performer Joel Grey, and granddaughter Jennifer Grey.
For our purposes here, let me say that listening to Mickey Katz while dusting is wonderfully motivating. When I do, I immediately feel transported to my grandparents dining room. In the sound of Katz’ Yiddishisms, I hear their generation and it is a comforting sound. For that reason, may I suggest you work in the dining room while listening to the most meshuga Mickey?
There was a period in the late-1970s where everyone made a disco record. Given the lemming-like tendencies of the record business to begin with, it was practically mandatory. For Miss Minnelli, who was not a stranger to discos in the first place, a foray to the dance floor probably made more sense than it did for many of her peers, (like say…Ethel Merman, maybe?) The resulting record, Tropical Nights, is not one of her strongest efforts, but I love it anyway, primarily for the album cover (art directed by LuAnn Graffeo) and for the inclusion of this frantic medley.
Though the “Tropical Nights/Bali Hai” medley begins atmospherically enough, by the time you get to the end of the 6:17 track you will be thrashing through your medicine chest for something in the benzodiazpine family: it’s that caffeinated. As always, Liza is up, up, up for anything and here she gives it her all (and then some). Belting at full volume and at the very top of her range for six minutes about the tropics will do far more for your dusting than it probably did for Liza’s pipes. Speaking of plumbing, this record is long enough to finish a particularly annoying task, like cleaning out under the sink, so get crackin’.
#7. “Up All Night” Taylor Dane
Though I’d already left Arista by the time Taylor’s second album Can’t Fight Fate was released, I always had an affinity for her and the other artists I knew and worked with at the very beginning of my career. Though Diane Warren’s “I’ll Be Your Shelter” and “Love Will Lead You Back” are the well-known mega-hits from this album, I always particularly enjoyed Shelly Peiken’s “Up All Night,” which easily could have been a hit as well.
The fact that I still enjoy listening to the song almost 25 years later is a testament to how highly I regard it still; that I’m endorsing the song as a house cleaning pick confers on the song an even greater level of esteem. But be warned in advance, this earworm of a twirler may very well have you prancing around with your dusting wand like a contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race.
#8. “Justified and Ancient” KLF featuring Tammy Wynette
It’s hard to express how much I enjoyed (and still adore) the bizarre cultural mash-up of country legend Tammy Wynnette and the U.K. band KLF. At the time the song was an international hit. I love hearing Tammy singing about Mu Mu Land and other things that don’t make sense. At the time, she was quoted as saying, “I really don’t know why they chose me. I was apprehensive at first, but I’m really excited with the way it’s all turned out. Mu Mu Land looks a lot more interesting than Tennessee, but I wouldn’t want to live there.”
#9. “If He Walked Into My Life” Eydie Gormé
In general I enjoy a wide range of musical styles but never more than while dusting. I think it is important to not get stuck in a rut; to keep the music varied both in tempo, genre, and vibe. Toward that end, a little Jerry Herman is never the wrong choice. Though I certainly do suggest housework accompanied by some of his uptempo standards, sometimes an exremely dramatic ballad allows the duster to step in to the frame of mind of the character. You’ll be surprised how this can impact your dusting and even change your style.
#10. “Cars That Go Boom” L’Trimm
Tigra and Bunny D. were two teenage girls from Kendall, Florida whose tribute to subwoofers was a minor hit back in 1989. I have always enjoyed dusting to L’Trimm and I think you will too. Though she may not enjoy it as much as I do, I bet Bunny has plenty of housework herself, having been married no less than five times, (though she only had four kids with four of her husbands). Who knows, maybe the sixth husband is the charm.
This song brings back fond memories of my days working at W.E.A. International (now Warner Music International), and serves as fun-filled finale to our first installment of great songs to dust to.
Other possible theories: UFOs are drilling for uranium to power their spaceships. Or maybe it’s a wormhole in the time/space continuum. Or the Hellmouth from Buffy. WHO THE HELL KNOWS?
What we DO know so far is this: A mysterious giant hole has suddenly appeared in Yamal, on the far north of Siberia. Nobody has many details right now, but the pics and video captured from a helicopter show a weird configuration with debris and signs of combustion around it. Was it an explosion, an impact, or some violent drilling? Scientists are baffled.
From The Daily Mail: There has been web speculation about the crater indicating ‘the arrival of a UFO craft’. But one Russian expert says the cause is more likely to be global warming releasing gases under the surface, which then explode like a champagne cork. Experts say that the darkening around the inner rim of the crater indicates ‘severe burning’ which scorched its edges.
But according to The Siberian Times, it might be something as boring as an explosion caused water, salt and gas.
Anna Kurchatova from Sub-Arctic Scientific Research Centre thinks the crater was formed by a water, salt and gas mixture igniting an underground explosion, the result of global warming. She postulates that gas accumulated in ice mixed with sand beneath the surface, and that this was mixed with salt – some 10,000 years ago this area was a sea.
Or maybe it’s a geological phenomenon called a pingo—a block of ice that’s grown into a small hill in the frozen arctic ground. Says polar scientist Chris Fogwill:
The permafrost [frozen earth] can be hundreds of metres thick, allowing for large ice features.
This is obviously a very extreme version of that, and if there’s been any interaction with the gas in the area, that is a question that could only be answered by going there.
We’re seeing much more activity in permafrost areas than we’ve seen in the historical past. A lot of this relates to this high degree of warming around these high arctic areas which are experiencing some of the highest rates of warming on earth.
Watch the video below and tweet me your theories @JSJdarling. (via Sploid)
On tonight’s very special episode, we find Big Freedia at home with her family planning the final celebration of Miss Vera’s life. It’s a difficult time but Freedia finds strength in her family and friends. Their stories of Vera are both emotional and inspiring. Freedia, along with her sister, Crystal, uncle Percy and the rest of the family set the stage for a loving and fitting homegoing for Miss Vera. It’s and emotional send off that is fit for a queen. Queen Vera, you will live on in our hearts.
Our old chum Lisa Edelstein attends the 2014 Television Critics Association Summer press tour. She stars in the upcoming scripted Bravo series Girl’s Guide to Divorce which promises to be amaaaazing.
Wowlebrity and LOVE OF MY LIFE Luis D. Ortiz attends the 2014 Television Critics Association Summer press tour. I just want to put him in a little locked cupboard in my kitchen and KEEP IN THERE FOREVER. Is that creepy?
Scott Michael Foster walks around Vancouver on a day off from filming Once Upon a Time. He’ll play Kristoff from Frozen on the upcoming third season, as well as on the possible spinoff. Yes, a Frozen TV series. Way to milk that teat, Disney.
Gripping mini-doc about the legendary Club My-O-My, a female impersonator club that flourished in New Orleans from 1930s-1960s, with interviews from some of the (now elderly) performers. Says Lady Bunny: “I think I saw Bianca Del Rio!” Interesting how different drag was back then, and how classy all the dames were.
The Club My-O-My was a female impersonator club that originated and ended in the French Quarter. It flourished after first being kicked out of an informal, after-hours home in a fur warehouse in the Vieux Carre in the early 1930s, according to oral history in the New Orleans gay community. The Club My-O-My joined the older Wonder Bar in the West End area of New Orleans. The Wonder Bar eventually closed; from the 1930s through the 1960s, the My-O-My served as a popular part of New Orleans nightlife for tourists as well as residents.
The New Orleans club was one of several in the United States whose impersonators performed for heterosexual as well as homosexual audiences. Grayline Tours brought tourists by the busload for decades until a 1972 fire destroyed its lakefront location. The club relocated to the French Quarter for a short while before closing for good. The once risque club had been rendered too tame by the sexual revolution and changes in dress and mores.For the majority of its existence, the club allowed only white patrons and white performers.
Elaine Stritch died on Monday in her Birmingham, Michigan home at age 89. Stritch was nominated for five Tony awards (and won in 2002 for her one-woman show Elaine Stritch at Liberty.) She was praised for work in shows like Bus Stop, Company and Sail Away. Younger generations know her best as Alec Baldwin’s brassy, punishing mother on 30 Rock where she won an Emmy for her role as Colleen Donaghy. (Watch her in the clip below. It’s a master class in phrasing and comic timing. She can take any line – ANY LINE – and milk it for whatever she was after) She was totally self-assured in life, and just this year dropped the F-bomb on live TV during a Today Show in an interview with Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb. For years she lived at the Carlyle Hotel in Manhattan. Last year she moved to Birmingham to be closer to family// Liza Minnelli said about her;
“Elaine was a magnificent woman in every sense of the word. A true trail blazer. Her talent and spunk will be greatly missed by so many of us.”
Jesse Tyler Ferguson, from Modern Family, also shared his thoughts, via Twitter;
“What a life! 89 full years. A true legend & one of my all time favorites.”
The marquees of all Broadway theaters will be dimmed in Stritch’s memory tomorrow night at 7:45 p.m. for one minute in her honor, the theater community state in a statement. Charlotte St. Martin, executive director of the Broadway League, said in a statement;
“Elaine Stritch’s big personality was matched by her big talent. Collaborating with some of Broadway’s greatest playwrights and composers throughout her lengthy career, her signature numbers and singular style created a memorable legacy. Elaine Stritch will always be remembered as an important part of Broadway’s rich history, and she will be missed by her many fans.”
She surely will be. What a great old broad, as they used to say…
Nicole Richie stopped by Buzzfeed to give her opinion on 46 random things. What does she think of crocs, guacamole, Hilary Clinton, and more? Click over and find out!
What a GORGEOUS shot! RuPaul’s Drag Race legend returned to her old stomping grounds this week for the Sydney Mardi Gras, when a gust of wind BLEW UP SKIRT. Marilyn Monroe’s got NOTHING on our girl. This might be the most glamorous wardrobe malfunction EVER! She tweets of the incident: “It was a bit windy yesterday at @sydoperahouse. #sydneymardigras”
And here’s another shot of her outfit billowing in the wind. Just fab.
On this episode of Courtney Naturally, Courtney Stodden plays the blindfold drawing challenge! See if her drawings of a unicorn, kitty cat, and a bunny look anything like those animals!
Watch new episodes of Courtney Naturally every Thursday on WOWPresents!
Previous Episodes
Accents Challenge
Courtney shows us her accent “skills!” Listen to her do a British, Southern, Australian, Irish, Russian, plus so many more accents!
Saltine Cracker Challenge
Courtney plays the saltine cracker challenge! Can she eat 6 saltine crackers in 60 seconds? It’s harder than it sounds!
Courtney Stodden tells some really…bad jokes! Courtney some how manages to make these bad jokes funny! Tweet Courtney YOUR favorite BAD joke!
Chubby Bunny Challenge
Courtney does the chubby bunny challenge! How many jumbo size marshmallows can she fit in her mouth? Gotta watch to find out!
Blindfold Object Challenge
Courtney does the blindfold object challenge! Using only her hands, Courtney has to guess what the objects are that she’s touching.
Wikipedia Mad Libs
Courtney plays some Mad Libs! Mad Libs with a twist! She fills in the blanks from her Wikipedia page!
Courtney N’ Krista
Courtney Stodden’s Mom, Krista stops by to take a trip down memory lane! She comes equipped with old photos and stories of Courtney when she was a little girl!
Hollywood Haul
Courtney has a shopping spree on Hollywood Boulevard, shows us what she bought, and gives a little fashion show!
Dear Courtney
Courtney answers questions that she was asked on Twitter.
#StoddenSelfie
Courtney shows how to take one of her infamous Stodden Seflies!
Helium Hoorah:
Courtney hits a high note while singing with the help of helium balloons.
Courtney Stodden, the infamous tabloid teen-bride and bombshell-beauty, is ready to expose a new and surprising side of herself in an original web series! Courtney Naturally reveals Courtney’s genuine and softer side that the tabloids have too often ignored – the girl behind the gossip. This intimate series showcases Stodden perched among a serene setting of fluffy white clouds, where she shares compelling personal stories, advice, and hosts quirky YouTube video challenges. Get a glimpse of Courtney Stodden’s unique perspective on the world that only someone of her age and experience could have! No topic is off limits, including her world famous boobs.
Courtney says about her webshow:
“It’s a delight and honor to be creating such a fun web series with World Of Wonder, I’m excited to reveal the many colors of my personality and share pieces of me, naturally.”
New episodes of Courtney Naturally every Thursday, on WOWPresents!
So, is this your big chance to cash in with sponsorships?
I suppose so. That’s what everyone’s telling me.
Your agent says you’re seeking sponsorships that fit who you are as a person.
It’s important that I’m a role model, and that the companies that I associate myself with feel the same way about their own images. Those are companies I’d like to be associated with. I try not to and I don’t think I ever have just jumped at any opportunity because a company wanted me. Just because there was money on the table doesn’t mean that I took it.
Are you looking for long-term deals?
Sponsorships and marketing are oftentimes pretty short-lived. From a company’s standpoint, they’re often not looking to do tremendously long contracts. They’re always trying to catch the next big thing. I do believe that relationships are important. I always feel that if it works for me and it works for them, if there’s a good rapport, then longer-term relationships—one year, two years, five years, whatever that means—help to grow my brand and the company’s brand. Consistency’s important.
Has your sudden fame in the U.S. been overwhelming? It’s not overwhelming for me in the sense that I play in England. In England, soccer is just mega—it’s huge. I’ve been there for 11 years. I’ve seen firsthand how people react. Obviously, in America, the nonsoccer fans have really taken notice of the sport with the World Cup. That’s been cool to see as an American who is trying to help grow the sport.
What’s shocked or surprised you the most in the past couple of weeks?
Just how intrusive a camera phone can be (laughs). That’s just the world in which we live. That’s society today, so I understand how that works. The worst thing is probably when I’m with my children, having people bombard me at times.
Is it better to experience this kind of fame at 35? Could you have handled it at 21, 22?
Without question, I think it’s better to be a mature adult who’s gone through life experiences, who’s seen some ups and downs.
Two for the road. The iconic Elaine Stritch performs two of her signature songs “The Ladies Who Lunch” and “I’m Still Here.” She’s not anymore (here) but she’ll never be forgotten. What a woman!
First up: “The Ladies Who Lunch” from Company. A bitter, biting, and vodka-soaked toast to empty-headed society swans who waste their time with frivolous things like luncheons and parties. At the end of the song, the character Stritch plays, Joanne, realizes that she is one, herself – a socialite who spends her time criticizing the lives of other women, but never does anything to improve her own life. It’s a devastating critique of New York society, and nobody sings it better than Elaine.
Then: “I’m Still Here” from Follies waswritten for the show’s original star Yvonne de Carlo (TV’s Lily Muntser) by Stephen Sondheim. The song is a about looking back on a long and storied life and congratulating yourself on your survival. Elaine explains at the beginning of the video that an actress has only earned the right to perform the song once they reach 80, like herself. Everyone else is just fooling themselves.
Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view. Sinead O’Connor premiered her new single Take Me to Church on NPR yesterday. The new album, I’m not bossy, I’m the Boss, (a nod to the Ban Bossy campaign) drops on August 11. I know what you are thinking and yes, her last 8 albums were interesting? but this track feels different. Its feels like she may be back. And with an all new surprisingly “whorish” look which I love especially considering the Miley Cyrus fiasco…
Enjoy the track below, it’s like hearing from an old dear friend you haven’t talked to since 1990 (I do not want what I haven’t got).
