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Kane Brown is glad his daughter is too young to remember this year: “2020’s been tough in general”

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ABC/Image Group LAKane Brown’s latest song, “Worldwide Beautiful,” provides a poignant message of the importance of unity during a divisive time.

He released the song early in June, as millions of Americans were in the midst of turning out in protest against racism and police brutality. As a biracial man, Kane has firsthand experience with the prevalence of bigotry in America.

“The Black Power thing — Black Lives Matter — it’s important to not get lost in what’s being said,” the singer reflects to  HITS Daily Double. “It’s not that all lives don’t matter, it’s that all lives can’t matter until Black lives really matter.”

In 2019, Kane became a dad. He knows that his daughter, Kingsley, will have to face the same bigotry he does, but he admits he’s a little relieved that she’s too young to remember this year.

“2020’s been tough in general,” he notes. “I’m glad my daughter doesn’t know what’s going on, and she’s not going to remember.”

Still, Kane’s often asked how he’ll teach Kingsley about racism one day.

“I have a lot of people coming at me, asking ‘How are you going to explain to her when she’s pulled over?’ And, ‘What are you going to tell her about the difference between her and her white friends?’” Kane continues.

And while it’s difficult to make sense of a complicated legacy of racism in America, the singer says he’s tried to understand all sides.

“If I’m coming from my Black side, I’m super-scared if a cop pulls me over. But the cop? They’re in the line of fire every day, and that’s part of it,” Kane points out. “So I try to love everybody — the cops who do their jobs, anyone who’s a good person in society.”

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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"My marriage was over": Gwyneth Paltrow recalls her "conscious uncoupling" from Chris Martin

No Comments Entertainment News

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for J/P Haitian Relief Organization(LONDON) — Six years ago, Gwyneth Paltrow — the actress and lifestyle guru who made very personal-smelling candles famous — famously described her split from Coldplay’s Chris Martin as a “conscious uncoupling.”

In a new feature in British Vogue, Paltrow looks back at when she knew their 2003 marriage was done, and how the couple’s unique relationship has progressed since.

She explained she knew they were done on a 38th birthday trip to Tuscany, “I don’t recall when it happened, exactly. But I knew — despite long walks and longer lie-ins, big glasses of Barolo and hands held — my marriage was over.”

Paltrow recalled that “it felt almost involuntary, like the ring of a bell…cannot be undone…I tried to…push it far down….But I knew it. It was in my bones.”

As for what came next, the actress said, “I started to wonder, as impossible as it sounded, whether there was a way we could continue to feel the structure of our family on some level. Could we…still eat meals together? Vacation, even? Could we find levity and laugh?”

Paltrow says, “I had never heard of the phrase ‘conscious uncoupling.’ Frankly, the term sounded a bit full of itself, painfully progressive and hard to swallow…”

Turns out, the public felt the same way. “I never could have anticipated what came next,” Paltrow said. “The public’s surprise gave way quickly to…a strange combination of mockery and anger…”

But six years on, Paltrow now says the world has caught up. “Instead of people approaching me with, ‘Why did you say that?,’ they now approach me with, ‘How do you do that?'”

The uncoupled pair co-parent their two children: daughter Apple Martin, 16, and son Moses, 14.

In 2018, Paltrow married TV writer and producer Brad Falchuk.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Jennifer Nettles lends her voice to the National 4-H Council’s campaign to close the opportunity gap

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ABC/Image Group LAJennifer Nettles is the voice behind a PSA by the National 4-H council, in support of its newly-launched Opportunity4All campaign.

The project marks a push to close America’s education and economic opportunity gap, which affects millions of children across the country. In the PSA, Jennifer seeks to raise awareness about the lack of opportunities that children face as a result of their race and economic status, especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s time we provide opportunities for all our kids,” she declares in the short video. “It’s time to invest in their potential, so they can help our communities and our country thrive: Not in the future. Right now.”

Jennifer, who is a 4-H alumna herself, spoke out on social media about her role in the new partnership.

“55 million kids face a widening opportunity gap in America. Nothing should hold them back,” she wrote. “Not now. Not ever.”

The singer also shared a montage video featuring an array of young girls explaining what opportunity means to them.

As one half of country duo Sugarland, Jennifer is hard at work on new music with her band mate Kristian Bush. The pair postponed their planned spring tour due to the pandemic, but hinted that they would have brand-new music to share soon.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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Keke Palmer hosting this year’s MTV VMAs

No Comments Entertainment News

MTV(NEW YORK) — Keke Palmer is hosting this year’s MTV VMAs.

The actress, singer and TV personality extraordinaire will helm the awards ceremony, airing live from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY on August 30 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

“We’re thrilled to have the multi-talented Keke Palmer as this year’s VMAs host,” says Bruce Gillmer, president of Music, Music Talent, Programming & Events for ViacomCBS Media Networks. “Keke is an energetic force and a quadruple threat with unmatched comedic wit who will make this year’s show truly unforgettable.”

The performers announced for the show so far include K-pop superstars BTS, Doja Cat and J Balvin. This will mark BTS’ first-ever VMA performance and the TV debut of their new, English-only single, “Dynamite,” coming out on August 21. Additional performers to be announced soon.

Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande lead the MTV VMA nominations this year, with nine apiece.

By Andrea Tuccillo
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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The Cadillac Three enlist Kristian Bush, Hailey Whitters and more for curated global livestream series

No Comments Country Music News

Courtesy of The Cadillac ThreeAs the COVID-19 pandemic continues to keep country artists off the road, The Cadillac Three have found a creative way to safely return to the stage.

The band is establishing a curated livestream series called Country Fuzz Presents, which will feature performing acts like Hailey Whitters, Kristian Bush’s Dark Water, A Thousand Horses and many more.

Broadcasting from Nashville venue The Basement, the series will use specially-installed autonomous cameras, enabling a crew-less production, and provide thorough cleaning services between performances. The series kicks off on August 13 and will run through September.

“We are so excited to partner with Grimey and the Basement in our hometown to bring high quality livestream concerts from not only TC3 but a number of our artist friends that have been sidelined from touring as well,” explains the band’s Neil Mason. “Country Fuzz Presents is a way to give fans direct access to music in a time when we all desperately need and miss it.”

You can pick up your tickets to the virtual event now. Country Fuzz Presents will also drive donations to Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, with a goal of providing 100,000 meals in 100 days.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.