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Buy yourself flowers | Pop Recap #15

Why Miley Cyrus is getting sued for "Flowers," who's hosting Season 50 of SNL, what’s up with Katy Perry’s new album and more entertainment news from this week.

Author

Katrina
September 22, 2024

Happy Sunday! Welcome to another edition of the Pop Recap newsletter, filled with all the trending things you need to know in the entertainment world. I hope you enjoyed last week’s special editions on the VMAs and the Emmys. If you haven’t read those yet, make sure to check them out. Today, we’re talking everything new this week - from an exciting Saturday Night Live lineup announcement to Katy Perry’s album 143. Plus! Stay to the end for my pick(s!) of the week if you grew up watching Disney Channel and like fun music 🫡

🗞️ MAKING HEADLINES 🗞️

💐 Miley Cyrus is being sued over her Grammy-winning single “Flowers.” Tempo Music Investments, which owns a portion of the copyrights to Bruno Mars’ “When I Was Your Man,” is arguing that Cyrus’ song copies Mars’ 2012 hit both melodically and lyrically. Bruno Mars and his co-songwriters are not directly involved with the lawsuit. Listening to the songs together, I do hear a bit of a similarity in their melodies, however, it’s not something I noticed without the context of this lawsuit. There’s also of course the likely coincidental call-and-response of Mars saying he “should’ve brought you flowers,” and Cyrus singing “I can buy myself flowers.” What do you think? Let me know on social media.

🏙️ Saturday Night Live’s 50th season is off to a major start. The show revealed the lineup for its first five episodes. Fresh from her big win at the Emmys, Jean Smart is set to host the premiere this Saturday, with musical guest Jelly Roll. Stand-up comedian Nate Bargatze will return for the second season in a row to host alongside musical guest Coldplay on October 5. The October 12 episode will see Stevie Nicks return as musical guest for the first time in 40 years (she last appeared in 1983). Joining her is pop star Ariana Grande for her second hosting stint, likely in promotion of the upcoming Wicked film. Beetlejuice star Michael Keaton and the occasionally spooky alt-pop singer Billie Eilish will team up for the Halloween episode on October 19th. Finally, one week before the election, the great John Mulaney returns to host for a sixth time, with musical guest Chappell Roan, in an episode that’s sure to be memorable.

SNL 50!!!

💥Lin-Manuel Miranda and Eisa Davis have revealed the full tracklist and cast for their upcoming concept album for a musical based on the 1979 movie The Warriors. The album will feature an all female set of Warriors gang members, including Jasmine Cephas Jones, Julia K Harriman, Gizel Jiménez, Amber Gray, Aneesa Folds, Sasha Hutchings, Kenita Miller and Phillipa Soo. Plus! Ms. Lauryn Hill has been announced to portray Cyrus of The Gramercy Riffs.

They join a previously announced group on the album that includes Busta Rhymes, Stephen Sanchez, Joshua Henry, Nas, Colman Domingo, Billy Porter, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Casey Likes, Ghostface Killah, RZA and Marc Anthony. The Warriors concept album will release October 18.

🎄 Netflix has announced A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter, a holiday variety special filled with musical performances from the pop star and fun surprises. It’s set to premiere on December 6 and I cannot wait to see what’s in store! Until then, I’ll be streaming fruitcake, reminiscing on the time I saw Sabrina Carpenter live for the first time at Hot 99.5’s Jingle Ball concert way back in 2018 and hoping she’ll play the holiday tour again this year. BTW - Jingle Ball lineups drop on Friday and I will of course keep you updated on who is playing the tour.

⁉️ We have to talk about Katy Perry’s new album 143. It’s currently receiving scathing reviews online. I’ve been rooting for a comeback for Perry over the years because she’s released some really great songs that, in my opinion, should have been bigger hits (“Chained to the Rhythm” and “Never Really Over). However, it felt that each of the albums that coincided with these songs fell a little flat.

I think Katy Perry regularly tries to reinvent the wheel with her pop stuff each era, tweaking her sound to fall into whatever genre is most popular at the time to shoot for commercial success. She doesn’t seem to have a sole music identity anymore. She used to be the colorful, zany pop star, but now she’s more like a chameleon that blends into what’s popular whether it fits her sound and image or not.

With 143, the big criticism is that this time - she’s late. The dance pop sound of the project is so 2019 and isn’t reinventive in any way. I think the best shot for Perry to make a well-received, commercially successful comeback, is to return to the fun, lighthearted pop sound of her Teenage Dream and Prism eras—the kind of music that made her a pop icon in the first place.

With that being said, the album isn’t necessarily bad. I actually enjoyed some of 143, even if mindless, often monotone and not up to par with the Katy Perry of the early 2010s. I will not leave you thinking it's as awful as the internet may make you believe. You can still have a little fun listening to it for what it is if you please. One of the highlights of the album is its second single “LIFETIMES,” which almost certainly would have kicked off Perry’s comeback era in a more positive way than “WOMAN’S WORLD” did. I also really enjoyed “ALL THE LOVE,” “TRUTH,” “WONDER,” featuring her daughter Daisy and “ARTIFICIAL” featuring JID.

In this edition...

🎥 FILM NEWS 🎥

🎭 THEATER NEWS 🎭

Allison Russell, Unreal Unearth Tour - Columbia MD, May 17, 2024

🎵 MUSIC NEWS 🎵

  • Nominations for the 2024 Latin Grammys have been announced. Edgar Barrera, Karol G and Bad Bunny are the most nominated artists this year.  

  • The BET Hip Hop Awards have announced nominations, with Megan Thee Stallion, Kendrick Lamar and Drake getting the most nods. 

  • The first round of performers for the 55th Annual GMA Dove Awards have been announced. CeCe Winans, Maverick City Music, Tauren Wells and Crowder are among those taking the stage on October 1 in Nashville, TN. BTW - I’ll be there 😉 stay tuned!

  • GloRilla has announced her debut studio album Glorious will release on October 11. 

  • Nicki Minaj has announced that instead of releasing a deluxe version of her album Pink Friday 2, she will be putting out a new Pink Friday 3 project. Release date TBA. 

  • Cher, Tyla and Lisa are set to perform at this year’s Victoria's Secret Fashion Show on October 15.

  • Pitbull and New Kids on the Block are both headed to Vegas for their own separate residencies. 

  • Stevie Wonder, Thomas Rhett, Justin Timberlake, Zayn, Doechii and Leon Thomas, all announced new tour dates this week. BTW - I got tickets to see Zayn on his very first solo tour and I am SO EXCITED.

Check out the official Fan Fave New “poppin’ music” playlist on Spotify here for a look into what’s trending and new releases I’m into.

📺 TELEVISION NEWS 📺

New this week: Agatha All Along (Disney+), The Penguin (Max), High Potential (ABC/Hulu), The Golden Bachelorette S1 (ABC/Hulu)

👍🏽 PICK OF THE WEEK 👍🏽

I’m sharing two picks this week. One is actually a new piece of media and the other is simply celebrating a birthday today. 

First up, Child Star, the new documentary on Hulu directed by Demi Lovato. 

The film takes a look into the lives and experiences of actors who got their start in front of the camera as kids. The troubling child star industry is a subject that has been explored in media before, especially in cases where young actors were emotionally or physically abused on set. What sets this documentary apart is the fact that the entire project features former child stars having candid conversations with each other, instead of being interviewed by somebody outside of their world. We see some, like Demi Lovato and Camp Rock co-star Alyson Stoner, reconnect over shared projects, while others discover they’ve had similar experiences, such as feeling disconnected from their work or being scammed financially. Kenan Thompson, Drew Barrymore, JoJo Siwa, Raven-Symoné and Christina Ricci also appear in the documentary in addition to Lovato and Stoner.

Personally, I’ve found this genre of media a bit difficult to watch, knowing how many of these stars had their childhoods completely taken away with no support to keep them on the right track as they grew older. Plus, when its actors of shows that I loved growing up, it feels a little upsetting to know that as a child you were unknowingly supporting an industry that benefits off exploitation. The documentary shows how many kids, even today, dream of becoming stars. But that dream is often not what you think.

It’s also kind of hard to hear that the people behind the shows that put a smile on your face as a kid were struggling so much behind the scenes. I can’t imagine being a kid, still learning and growing up, yet knowing millions of other kids around the world were looking up to me.

That said, the documentary is an important and compelling watch. It's framed in a way that aims to promote change and educate the younger generation. The film includes conversations with kids who want to be famous actors and even touches on the new wave of internet stardom, where children profit through YouTube or TikTok before they even understand the implications of what they’re doing.

You can check Child Star out on Hulu.

My second Pick of the Week goes to Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.

If you’ve somehow missed the Chappell Roan train, now is your time to hop on and listen to this album. You’re missing out, seriously. It’s very rare that I feel so passionately about a project, and the fact that it’s just her debut makes it even more impressive. It’s fun, it’s campy, you will immediately feel like dancing - I promise.

If you’re already familiar and love it, make sure to turn it up today to celebrate the very first anniversary of its release. There’s so much to love about this album, from the inspiring story of its slow-and-steady rise to success to the fact that it’s a true no-skip experience.

I listened to this album for the first time on a chilly day in February as Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour kicked off, where Roan was an opening act shortly before her massive blowup. I immediately knew it was a hit and Chappell Roan has been my most listened to artist, according to Tidal’s statistics, every month since.

The day I streamed the album for the first time and immediately needed to alert my friends to listen too.

So on the one year anniversary of The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, I cannot recommend enough that you give it a listen. If you’re curious, here’s my top 5:

  1. After Midnight

  2. Picture You

  3. Red Wine Supernova

  4. Naked in Manhattan

  5. Pink Pony Club

If you need me, I’ll be doing the HOT TO GO! dance all night long.

The next edition of Pop Recap will be out on Sunday.

Thanks for reading this special edition of the Pop Recap newsletter! If you enjoyed it, make sure to share with a friend. Stay connected with the Pop Recap and Fan Fave community on social media.

xx Katrina