Music

Ricky Martin dice que su padre siempre lo alentó a que compartiera su verdad y que en su momento lo animó para que saliera públicamente, mientras su equipo intentaba disuadirlo.

El cantante se sentó a conversar con Sirius XM para el programa "Andy Cohen Live", en donde se abrió sobre su decisión de contar abiertamente que es gay, y dice que no todos estaban de acuerdo respecto a si el mundo debía saberlo o no.

Martin le dijo a Andy que su equipo profesional pensaba que no era buena idea contar abiertamente que era gay, y que estaban bastante seguros de que podría acabar con su carrera.

Pero Ricky continuó explicando que su padre entendía la importancia de sincerarse completamente y lo empujó a decirle a todo el mundo después de que sus dos hijos nacieron en 2008. Fue entonces cuando su padre le dijo que no podía empezar enseñándoles que es mejor mentir que ser uno mismo.

En cualquier caso, Martin dice que se tomó un tiempo en escribir la carta que luego compartió con el mundo y tuiteó, y le dijo que cuando lo hizo se sintió aliviado instantáneamente y que le cayeron unas lágrimas de alegría.

Por supuesto, desde entonces Ricky ha tenido algunas relaciones muy públicas con otros hombres, incluyendo su matrimonio con el artista sueco Jwan Yosef desde 2017 hasta su divorcio el año pasado.

Ricky Martin says his dad was all for him living his truth out loud ... telling him he needed to come out publicly -- this while his professional team tried to talk him out of it.

The singer sat down for an interview on Sirius XM's "Andy Cohen Live" when he opened up about deciding to come out as gay -- and he says not everyone was in alignment on whether or not he should let the world know.

Martin told Andy his professional team told him it wasn't a good idea to reveal himself as an openly gay man ... in fact, he says they were quite certain it could kill his career.

But, Ricky goes on to explain his dad understood the importance of coming out and pushed him to tell the world after his two sons were born in 2008 ... with his pops saying RM couldn't start out by teaching his children it's better to lie than be yourself.

In any case, Martin says he took his time formulating a letter to tell the world he was gay and then tweeted it out ... and he said he felt instant relief -- sobbing tears of joy.

Of course, Ricky's since had some very public relationships with men ... including his high-profile marriage to Swedish artist Jwan Yosef from 2017 ... until their divorce last year.

Candace Owens -la experta en política- estuvo en "The Breakfast Club" y pasó un examen de cultura con gran éxito... ¡rojo, negro y verde!

El jueves, Charlamagne, Jess Hilarious y DJ Envy sorprendieron a Candace con un "cuestionario negro" que habían compilado, y la orgullosa -aunque polarizada- republicana, impresionó interpretando gran parte del tema de apertura de "El Príncipe de Bel-Air" de Will Smith.

A Candace tampoco se le ocurrió el nombre del juez del Tribunal Supremo Ketanji Brown Jackson... pero sabía lo qué NO hay que llevar a una comida al aire libre.

A lo largo de la aparición, Candace mantuvo que no estaba en contra de la "cultura negra", sino más bien contra la ignorancia, y culpó a las escuelas públicas y a la adoración de celebridades en la comunidad por mantener a la gente ignorante.

Su postura sobre la educación explica su reciente reacción al éxito de Ice Spice "Fart", donde declaró que la canción por sí sola hizo retroceder a la sociedad estadounidense unos cuantos niveles.

Hablando de canciones de fuego, el cuestionario también reveló que Candace necesita un repaso del tema "Good Times".

Candace Owens' "Black Card" will not be revoked -- not today, at least -- as the political pundit went on "The Breakfast Club" and passed a culture quiz with flying colors ... red, black and green!!!

On Thursday, Charlamagne, Jess Hilarious and DJ Envy all surprised Candace with a pop "Black quiz" they'd compiled, and the proud, yet polarizing, Republican impressed the gang right off the bat by rapping much of the opening theme to Will Smith's "The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air."

Candace also couldn't come up with Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's name ... but she did know what NOT to bring to the cookout, in terms of food.

Throughout the appearance, Candace maintained she wasn't against Blackness, but more so Black illiteracy and blamed public schools and celebrity worship in the community for holding folks back.

Her stance on education explains her recent reaction to Ice Spice's "Fart" hit ... where she declared the track single-handedly set American society back a few notches!

Speaking of fire songs, the quiz also revealed Candace needs a refresher on the "Good Times" theme.

La publicista de Beyoncé no está de acuerdo con Erykah Badu y le responde con pruebas que demuestran que la diva siempre ha llevado las trenzas que Erykah afirma que le han robado.

La publicista de Bey -Yvette Noel-Schure- entró al chat para responderle a Badu, y no perdió el tiempo publicando un álbum de recortes de Bey luciendo el peinado de trenzas a lo largo de su carrera, algunas fotos incluso parecen estar fechadas en su infancia.

Yvette subtitula el post diciendo: "She slays. She slays. Now. Then. Always. act ii COWBOY CARTER 3.29 #criticswithoutcredentials".

Así que, sí, es un ataque directo a Erykah.

Como informamos, la cantante de "Mama's Gun" tiene la impresión de que Beyoncé le está robando su estilo. El año pasado, la selección de sombreros de Bey durante su gira "Renaissance" hizo que Erykah se pusiera roja, ya que ella también ha mostrado ese estilo durante años en sus propios conciertos.

Beyoncé's ride-or-die isn't here for Erykah Badu's copycat shade -- she's firing back with receipts proving Miss "Cowboy Carter" has always rocked the braids Erykah claims she jacked from her.

Bey's longtime publicist Yvette Noel-Schure entered the chat to respond to EB, and wasted no time posting a full-blown scrapbook of Bey wearing the braided hairstyle throughout her career ... some snaps even appear to be dated in her childhood!!!

Yvette captioned the post with ... “She slays. She slays. Now. Then. Always. act ii COWBOY CARTER 3.29 #criticswithoutcredentials.”

So, yeah ... totally a direct shot at Erykah.

As we reported, the "Mama's Gun" singer is under the impression Beyoncé is leeching off her style flair -- last year, Bey's hat selection during her "Renaissance" tour made EB see red as she's also donned the oversized derby for years in her own concerts.

Michael Jackson's family is involved in a complex legal battle ... and they're not all on the same side in this one -- 'cause MJ's son Blanket is trying to stop his own grandmother from using estate money in her ongoing fight.

Here's the deal ... Blanket -- MJ's youngest son, whose real name is Bigi Jackson -- filed documents this week, obtained by TMZ,  asking the court not to allow his grandmother Katherine to use Michael's estate money to fund an appeal of a previous ruling.

Basically, Blanket and his grandmother were recently working together to stop the executors of Jackson's estate from going through with a huge business transaction that they were very much so against.

The docs don't say exactly what the transaction was -- it's been shrouded in mystery throughout this saga -- but, based on recent reporting, it seems like it may be related to the deal the estate made with Sony to sell about half of Michael's music catalog for $600M.

Blanket explains he and his grandmother presented their arguments opposing the deal ... but ultimately the court ruled against them -- seemingly bringing the legal issue to a close.

However, Katherine's decided to appeal the ruling ... a move Blanket says he doesn’t want any part of -- and, more importantly ... he doesn't want his father's estate paying for her legal bills. As you know, he's an heir to the estate ... so that cash is pretty important to him.

The way Blanket explains it in the docs ... the appeal has little chance of winning, and he says he doesn't think it truly benefits the beneficiaries of the trust to continue the fight -- so, he simply doesn't want the estate to foot the bill for it ... something Katherine wants.

Blanket's also asked the court to use its best judgment to grant Katherine reasonable attorney's fees incurred from the pre-appeal battle -- which he agrees she's entitled to ... at least to a certain extent.

It's unsurprising Blanket's filing against Katherine ... just yesterday, executors of Michael's estate reportedly claimed that she receives a seven-figure allowance for the year -- money Blanket presumably would rather she use for the appeal instead of the estate's dough.

Beyoncé is adamant her "Cowboy Carter" isn't a country album, but Azealia Banks needs further convincing -- the outspoken artist is so on one, her rant is overshadowing the album announcement on social media!!!

Azealia's unloaded on Bey in the past, but is now convinced her ex-Black Girl Superhero is putting on a do-si-do front for Caucasian Grammy voters just to snag that elusive Album of the Year award.

In an audio recording, she also accused Beyoncé of kowtowing to Taylor Swift, and claimed she's no longer setting trends in the music industry.

Azelia basically wrote a short story that reads, in part, "Wow we didn't even try to put even a little effort into a more artistic title?"

She then referenced Beyoncé performing "Daddy Lessons" with The Chicks during the 2016 CMAs -- "Ur always sharing ur platform with white women who are so jealous of you but have such a long history of sabotaging other Black womens careers."

Bey's got the most Grammy wins ever, but no AOTY ... a point her hubs Jay-Z infamously made during the last Grammy gala.

AB made several more points of her own ... she labeled Bey's outfits as "White woman cosplay" and the entire "Cowboy Carter" rollout as "pick me stuff" -- a.k.a. smoke signals for white audiences to single her out.

She also blames Jay for "overstrategizing" the artistic vision, and said Kelsea Ballerini and Carrie Underwood can make better music in their sleep!!!

Bey's milestone of becoming the first Black woman to go No. 1 on the country charts also got smeared in her face ... Azealia notes tons of Black country artists have been grinding for years, but don't have Bey's advantage and the funds to get their tunes the traction they need.

La familia de Michael Jackson está involucrada en una compleja batalla legal y no todos están en el mismo bando, pues el hijo de Michael, Blanket, está tratando de detener a su propia abuela de usar dinero de la herencia en el marco de la lucha que está en curso.

Esta es la cuestión, Blanket, el hijo menor de Michael Jackson, cuyo verdadero nombre es Bigi Jackson, presentó documentos esta semana que fueron obtenidos por TMZ, que piden al tribunal que no permita que su abuela Katherine utilice el dinero de la herencia de Michael para financiar una apelación de una sentencia anterior.

Básicamente, Blanket y su abuela estuvieron trabajando juntos recientemente para impedir que los albaceas de la herencia de Jackson siguieran adelante con una enorme transacción comercial con la que ellos estaban muy en contra.

Los documentos no dicen exactamente cuál fue la transacción, la que ha estado envuelta en misterio a lo largo de esta saga, pero de acuerdo a la información reciente, parece que puede estar relacionada con el acuerdo que los albaceas hicieron con Sony para vender la mitad del catálogo musical de Michael por $600M.

Blanket explica que él y su abuela presentaron sus argumentos en contra del acuerdo, pero en última instancia, el tribunal falló en contra de ellos y aparentemente habría puesto fin a la cuestión jurídica.

Sin embargo, Katherine ha decidido apelar al fallo, un movimiento del que Blanket no quiere ser parte, y más importante, no quiere que la herencia de su padre pague estas facturas legales. Como saben, él es uno de los herederos, por lo que el dinero es muy importante.

Por la forma en que Blanket lo explica en los documentos, la apelación tiene pocas posibilidades de ganar y dice que no cree que beneficie a los beneficiarios del fideicomiso, por lo que simplemente no quiere pagar por ello, pero Katherine sí.

Blanket también le ha pedido al tribunal que use su mejor juicio para concederle a Katherine unos honorarios razonables por los abogados incurridos en la batalla previa a la apelación, algo a lo que él considera que sí tiene derecho, al menos hasta cierto punto.

No es de extrañar esta petición de Blanket en contra de Katherine. Ayer mismo, los albaceas de la herencia de Michael, según los informes, afirmaron que ella recibió una asignación de siete cifras este año, dinero que Blanket presumiblemente preferiría que utilice para la apelación en lugar de recurrir al efectivo del fideicomiso.

Beyoncé insiste en que su "Cowboy Carter" no es un álbum country, pero Azealia Banks necesita algo más para convencerse, y ha estado despotricando en redes sociales contra la diva.

Azealia ha criticado a Bey en el pasado, pero ahora está convencida de que su ex superheroína afroamericana está dando pasos sus siguientes pasos artísticos en una dirección complaciente con los jueces caucásicos de los Grammy, con el fin de obtener el escurridizo premio al Álbum del Año.

En una grabación de audio, también acusó a Beyoncé de doblegarse ante Taylor Swift, y afirmó que ya no está marcando tendencias en la industria musical.

Azelia básicamente escribió una pequeña historia que dice: "Vaya, ¿ni siquiera intentamos poner un poco de esfuerzo en un título más artístico?".

Luego se refirió a Beyoncé interpretando "Daddy Lessons" con The Chicks durante los CMAs 2016: "Siempre compartiendo su plataforma con mujeres blancas que están tan celosas de ti, pero tienen una larga historia de sabotear otras carreras de mujeres negras".

Bey tiene el mayor número de victorias en los Grammy, pero no el disco del Año. Recordemos cuando su marido -Jay-Z- apareció en la gala de los Grammy hace poco para decir lo que piensa al respecto.

Azalealia continuó, etiquetando los trajes de Bey como "cosplay de mujer blanca" y todo el despliegue de "Cowboy Carter" como "pick me stuff".

También culpa a Jay de "sobreestrategizar" la visión artística, y dijo que Kelsea Ballerini y Carrie Underwood ¡pueden hacer mejor música mientras duermen!

El hito de Bey de convertirse en la primera mujer afroamericana en llegar al número 1 en las listas de country también le explotó en la cara. Azealia señala que toneladas de artistas negros han trabajado duro durante años, pero no tienen la ventaja de Bey y los fondos para obtener que sus canciones tengan el mismo impacto.

Shakira está abrazando completamente su vida de soltera, tanto que acaba de confesar que estar casada era algo que le pesaba y le puso un freno a su carrera musical.

La cantante colombiana estuvo 11 años con el futbolista Gerard Piqué, antes de que se separaran en 2022 en medio de rumores de infidelidad, y recientamente le dijo a Zane Lowe de Apple Music 1 que sin Gerard en su vida tiene un impulso compulsivo por trabajar y hacer música como nunca antes.

Ahora, la soltería de Shakira no es perfecta tampoco. También fue realista sobre los desafíos que conlleva ser madre soltera de sus hijos Milán, de 11 años y Sasha, 9 años.

La reina de "Hips Don't Lie", que se mudó de España a los Estados Unidos después de su separación, cuenta que sus dos hijos se apoyan mucho en ella y sin el maridito en el cuadro, dice que está sosteniendo el buque por sí misma.

Esta no es la primera vez que Shakira arremete contra Gerard por el impacto negativo que tuvo en su trabajo como cantente. También le dijo al Sunday Times que tuvo que sacrificar su carrera musical en nombre del amor.

Pero ahora, luego de 7 largos años, Shakira está de vuelta con su muy esperado álbum de estudio, "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran" (Women Don't Cry Anymore), ¡que saldrá este viernes!

Shakira's all about that single life ... straight-up saying being married weighed her down, and put a damper on her music career.

The Colombian singer was with soccer player Gerard Piqué for 11 years before they separated in 2022 amid infidelity rumors ... and she told Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 that with Gerard outta the picture, she's now got a compulsive urge to work and make music like never before.

Shakira's singledom ain't all sunshine and rainbows though ... she's also keeping it real about the challenges of being a single parent to her sons, 11-year-old Milan and 9-year-old Sasha.

The "Hips Don't Lie" queen, who made the move from Spain to the U.S. post-split, dishes that her 2 kiddos are leaning on her big time ... and with no hubby in the picture, she's holding down the fort all by herself.

This ain't the first time Shakira's gently lashed out about how Gerard negatively impacted her career -- she also told the Sunday Times she sacrificed her music-making journey in the name of love.

But, Shakira's back in action ... after 7 long years, she's dropping her much-awaited studio album, "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran" (Women Don't Cry Anymore), this Friday!

Fernando Tatis Jr. had some solid pump-up music as he prepared for his game against the Dodgers on Thursday ... casually stretching just feet away from K-pop group (G)I-dle's pregame show!!

The San Diego Padres superstar was spotted limbering up prior to Game 2 of the MLB Seoul Series at Gocheok Sky Dome ... and just like the day prior with aespa, the host city booked a big-name act to get the crowd ready for the contest.

Soyeon, Minnie, Miyeon, Yuqi and Shuhua made their way onto the field to belt out some tunes prior to the Dodgers vs. Padres game ... doing renditions of "Super Lady," "Tomboy" and "Queencard."

Tatis Jr. had the best seat in the house for the 10-minute set ... and he didn't seem to mind one bit that there was a full-blown concert going on right in front of him.

Perhaps the music helped ... 'cause FTJ had a much better outing on Thursday ... going 2-4 with two runs and an RBI.

As for (G)I-dle, it also marked the first time since member Shuhua rejoined the group after a month-long hiatus to focus on her health ... so it was quite the special day for Neverland all around.

A Bianca Censori se le debe estar abriendo el apetito mientras se pavonea casi desnuda, pues ella y Kanye West pasaron a comer a uno de sus lugares preferidos.

La pareja llegó hasta Cheesecake Factory el miércoles en The Grove en Los Ángeles y Bianca estaba usando su prenda de costumbre, esto es, un body de color nude transparente emparejado con pantalones cortos bien ajustados en su trasero. Naturalmente, esa combinación atrajo la atención de los fotógrafos y de los compradores.

Pero resulta que llegaron un poco temprano para almorzar, superando incluso la hora de apertura del restaurante a las 11:30 AM.

Parecían ansiosos por entrar, pero se encontraron con las puertas cerradas cuando intentaron abrirlas.

Bianca Censori parecía desconcertada, normalmente las puertas se abren de par en par para las estrellas en la ciudad y eso llevó a Ye a sacar su teléfono para hacer una llamada.

La seguridad del centro comercial apareció inmediatamente y trató de despejar a todos los paparazzi y curiosos.

Los Wests no tuvieron que esperar demasiado tiempo, alguien hizo los arreglos para que pudieran obtener un trato VIP, ya que se les permitió entrar 10 minutos antes.

Sin duda, su estatus de celebridad debe haber sorprendido a los trabajadores y a cualquier cliente que llegara durante las horas normales de apertura.

Parece que Cheesecake Factory se está convirtiendo en el lugar favorito de la pareja. El año pasado, Ye y la señora West fueron fotografiados en otra ubicación de la cadena dentro de Topanga Westfield Mall en Los Ángeles.

Ya shoot one President, and suddenly ya can't buy a break ... that's John Hinckley Jr.'s gripe, essentially, after his latest folk singing gig got canned.

The man who opened fire on President Ronald Reagan -- and also injured Press Secretary James Brady, a Secret Service agent and cop -- has become a guitar-strumming folk singer, who actually gets booked for concerts, but they tend to get canceled before he gets onstage.

Hinckley's bitching about his latest yanked gig at Hotel Huxley in Naugatuck, CT, where he was supposed to perform on March 30 ... until the venue announced last week it was pulling the plug. He told the NY Post, "I think it's fair to say I'm a victim of cancel culture."

Referring to all of his canceled shows, he added, "It keeps happening over and over again."

Last week Hotel Huxley posted on its IG page, "You Guessed It: Postponed Until Further Notice (They're killin us here)." That last line seems to be a reference to the massive backlash the venue was getting for booking Hinckley -- but also feels distasteful, considering the concert date would've marked 43 years, to the day, since the attempted assassination of Reagan.

Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity, and spent nearly 30 years in a mental health hospital before he was released in 2016.

Since then, he's picked up the guitar and actually released songs on his YouTube channel.

His first concert was booked for Brooklyn in 2022, but again, was canceled due to backlash -- and that's subsequently happened for his other planned shows in Georgia, Illinois and Virginia ... where he now lives in Williamsburg.

Karma. It's a thing.

Bianca Censori must be working up quite the appetite struttin' around nearly naked ... 'cause she and Kanye West hit up the classic spot for oversized dishes and doggy bags.

The couple cruised over to the Cheesecake Factory Wednesday at The Grove in L.A., and Bianca was rocking her standard issue fit -- sheer nude-colored bodysuit paired with athletic shorts rolled up high on her booty. Naturally, that combo drew plenty of attention from photogs and shoppers.

But, it turns out they arrived a bit early for lunch, beating the restaurant's 11:30 AM opening time.

They looked eager to get inside, but found the doors still locked when they tried to enter.

BC looked around puzzled -- doors normally swing open for A-listers in this town, after all -- and that prompted Ye to whip out his phone to make a call.

Mall security immediately appeared and tried to clear all the paps and onlookers.

The Wests weren't hung out to dry for too long -- someone made arrangements for them to get VIP treatment at the CF ... as they were allowed inside 10 minutes early.

No doubt their celebrity status would've surprised the workers and any customers set to arrive during normal opening hours.

Seems like Cheesecake Factory is becoming a go-to spot for this couple ... last year, Ye and the missus were snapped at another CF location inside L.A.'s Topanga Westfield Mall.